I did not feel that I was fighting men.
They were monsters and gave me the horrible sensation of being in
darkness with crawling serpents. Yes, I struck hard. And the son was
striking, and neither of us could see. I felt my weapon hit, and it was
then that Kirkstone crumpled down with a blubbery wheeze. You know what
happened after that. The next morning only one copper weight was found
in that room. The son had done away with the other. And the one that
was left was covered with Kirkstone's blood and hair. There was no
chance for me. So I got away. Six months later my father died in
prison, and for three years I've been hunted as a fox is hunted by the
hounds. That's all, Conniston. Did I kill Judge Kirkstone? And, if I
killed him, do you think I'm sorry for it, even though I hang?"
"Sit down!"
The Englishman's voice was commanding. Keith dropped back to his seat,
breathing hard. He saw a strange light in the steely blue eyes of
Conniston.
"Keith, when a man knows he's going to live, he is blind to a lot of
things. But when he knows he's going to die, it's different. If you had
told me that story a month ago, I'd have taken you down to the hangman
just the same.
Pages:
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25