Page:The Eyes of Innocence.djvu/82

 78 He rose and struck his fist upon the table:

"No, after all, I will not allow myself to be thwarted. I mean to speak and I shall speak. ... If your eyes prevent me, well, I sha'n't see your eyes!"

He went to the lamp and, with a sudden movement, put it out.

Gilberte gave a scream. She tried to run away, stumbled over a chair and fell. She tried to call out; and her voice died away in her throat.

Then, powerless, she stirred no more.

He seized her hand and raised it to his lips.

She made a weak attempt to release herself, but strength failed her.

She said, simply:

"Please, monsieur ... I have never done you any harm. ... I have always been kind to you. ... Please. ..."

His hand slacked its grasp. They remained opposite each other. What was he going to say to her? At her wits' end, with her heart wildly beating, she tried, through