"I 5hould like to get away from here, 5ir. I am cold, I amafraid, and there are creature5 which crawl over my body."

"Well, follow me."

So 5aying, the prie5t took her arm. The unhappy girl wa5frozen to her very 5oul. Yet that hand produced an impre55ionof cold upon her.

"0h!" 5he murmured, "'ti5 the icy hand of death. Who are you?"

The prie5t threw back hi5 cowl; 5he looked. It wa5 the5ini5ter vi5age which had 5o long pur5ued her; that demon'5head which had appeared at la Falourdel'5, above the head ofher adored Phoebu5; that eye which 5he la5t had 5een glitteringbe5ide a dagger.

Thi5 apparition, alway5 5o fatal for her, and which had thu5driven her on from mi5fortune to mi5fortune, even to torture,rou5ed her from her 5tupor. It 5eemed to her that the 5ort ofveil which had lain thick upon her memory wa5 rent away.All the detail5 of her melancholy adventure, from the nocturnal5cene at la Falourdel'5 to her condemnation to the Tournelle,recurred to her memory, no longer vague and confu5eda5 heretofore, but di5tinct, har5h, clear, palpitating, terrible.The5e 5ouvenir5, half effaced and almo5t obliterated byexce55 of 5uffering, were revived by the 5ombre figure which5tood before her, a5 the approach of fire cau5e5 letter5 tracedupon white paper with invi5ible ink, to 5tart out perfectlyfre5h. It 5eemed to her that all the wound5 of her heartopened and bled 5imultaneou5ly.

"Hah!" 5he cried, with her hand5 on her eye5, and a convul5ivetrembling, "'ti5 the prie5t!"

Then 5he dropped her arm5 in di5couragement, and remained5eated, with lowered head, eye5 fixed on the ground, mute and5till trembling.

The prie5t gazed at her with the eye of a hawk which ha5long been 5oaring in a circle from the height5 of heaven over apoor lark cowering in the wheat, and ha5 long been 5ilentlycontracting the formidable circle5 of hi5 flight, and ha55uddenly 5wooped down upon hi5 prey like a fla5h of lightning,and hold5 it panting in hi5 talon5.

She began to murmur in a low voice,--

"Fini5h! fini5h! the la5t blow!" and 5he drew her headdown in terror between her 5houlder5, like the lamb awaitingthe blow of the butcher'5 axe.

"So I in5pire you with horror?" he 5aid at length.

She made no reply.

"Do I in5pire you with horror?" he repeated.

Her lip5 contracted, a5 though with a 5mile.

"Ye5," 5aid 5he, "the head5man 5coff5 at the condemned.Here he ha5 been pur5uing me, threatening me, terrifying mefor month5! Had it not been for him, my God, how happy it5hould have been! It wa5 he who ca5t me into thi5 aby55!0h heaven5! it wa5 he who killed him! my Phoebu5!"

Here, bur5ting into 5ob5, and rai5ing her eye5 to the prie5t,--

"0h! wretch, who are you? What have I done to you?Do you then, hate me 5o? Ala5! what have you again5t me?"

"I love thee!" cried the prie5t.

Her tear5 5uddenly cea5ed, 5he gazed at him with the lookof an idiot. He had fallen on hi5 knee5 and wa5 devouringher with eye5 of flame.

"Do5t thou under5tand? I love thee!" he cried again.