h-eyes rose
before her in the darkness. Then she saw Ludwig with his gun searching
for the monster--saw him shoot at it, but without effect. The hideous
creature leaped merrily away.

More than once she awoke from her restless slumber and called softly:

"Ludwig, are you there?"

But no one answered the question. Since her last birthday Ludwig had not
occupied the lounge in her room. Marie had discovered this. She had
placed a rose-leaf on the silken coverlet every evening, and found it
still there in the morning. If any one had slept on the lounge, the
rose-leaf would have fallen to the floor.

The following day Ludwig was more silent than usual. He did not speak
once during their drive, and ate hardly anything at meals.

One could easily see how impatiently he waited for evening, when he
might go down to the lake and search for the monster--a sorry object for
a fury such as his! An otter, most likely, or a beaver--mayhap an
abortion of the Dead Sea, which had survived the ages since the days of
Sodom! All the same, it was a living creature, and must become food for
fishes. Marie, however, prayed so fervently that nothing might come of
Ludwig's fury that Heaven heard the prayer. The weather changed suddenly
in the afternoon. A cold west wind succeeded to the warm August
sunshine; clouds of dust arose; then came a heavy downpour of rain.
Ludwig was obliged to forego his intention to row about on the lake in
the evening. He spent the entire evening in his room, leaving Marie to
complain to her cats; but they were sleepy, and paid no attention to
what she said.

The little maid had no desire to go to bed; she was afraid she might
dream again of horrible things. The heavy rain beat against the windows;
thunder rumbled in the distance.

"I should not like to venture out of the house in such weather," said
Marie to her favorite cat, who was dozing on her knee. "Ugh-h! just
think of crossing the lonely court, or going through the dark woods!
Ugh-h! how horrible it must be there now! And then, to pass the
graveyard at the end of the village! When the lightning flashes, the
crosses lift their heads from the darkness--ugh-h!"

The clock struck eleven; directly afterward there came a hesitating
knock at her door.

"Come in! You may come in!" she called joyfully. She thought it was
Ludwig.

The door opened slowly, only half-way, and the voice which began to
speak was not Ludwig's; it was the groom.

"Beg pardon, mad