He knelt by the bed, and addressed her, but it was with difficulty he caught the words she spoke. Death was very near.
"Was Madeline my daughter?" he asked.
"Yes," answered Pauline, "as I am about to appear before my God!"
The effort exhausted her, and she lay still for many minutes. Then her hand feebly sought her pillow, and the Advocate, perceiving that she wished to obtain something from under it, searched and found a small packet. He knew immediately, when she motioned that she desired him to retain it, that it contained the certificate of his daughter's birth. The priest prayed audibly for the departing soul. Pauline's lips moved; the Advocate placed his ear close. She breathed the words:
"We shall meet again soon! Pray for forgiveness!"
Then death claimed her, and her earthly sorrows were ended.
CHAPTER IV
[ONWARD--TO DEATH]
Late in the afternoon the Advocate was stumbling, almost blindly, through the tempest towards the House of White Shadows. Father Capel had striven in vain to dissuade him from making the attempt to reach the villa.
"There is safety only in the sheltered heights," said the priest. "By this time the valleys are submerged, and the dwellings therein are being swept away. Ah me--ah me! how many of my poor are ruined; how many dead! Not in my experience have I seen a storm as terrible as this. It is sent as a warning and a punishment. Only the strongest houses in the villages that lie in the valleys will be able to withstand its fury. Be persuaded, and remain here until its force is spent."