As, with breathless lungs and beating heart she listened, she heard the sound of several heavy footsteps coming slowly up the stairs, and frequently pausing, as if to rest a burden. She heard them stop on the first landing outside her door, and then proceed heavily up the second flight of stairs. Then she heard them enter the room over her head, and deposit their burden so heavily that its slow fall shook the ceiling. This was followed by the shriek of a girl, that rang piercing through the house, and then dead silence.
Unable longer to endure the agony of suspense, Eudora rang her bell violently.
The summons was immediately answered by the landlady, who hastily entered the room.
Finding Eudora pale, faint and trembling, in a state of deadly terror, she came to her side instantly, saying:
“There, I knew they would frighten you in your nervous state, though I cautioned them to be quiet, too.”
“What is it?” gasped Eudora.
“La, dear, the men a-bringing home the captain in a dead stupor from the public, where he has been a-drinkin’ all night.”
“The captain?” echoed Eudora, still in a state of bewilderment.
“Yes, dear, Captain Wilder, as I told you about him and daughter last night. They’ve just brought him home stupid with drink, and the poor girl thought he was dead, and screamed out, that was all; but I told her as he’d come to after a bit, and made ’em lay him on the bed, so don’t you alarm yourself about it, my dear.”
Eudora sank back upon her pillow, half ashamed of the relief she felt in knowing that the present shock of sorrow had come to another instead of to herself.