for the first time during the week i had a good night's rest, for ever since my adventure the events in connection therewith had succeeded one another so rapidly that my brain was kept in too active a state to admit of slumber, but now that everything seemed to be at an end, that the antidote had been found, and that pallanza would be restored to bianca angello, my mind was relieved of the strain upon it, and i slept soundly till morning. in fact, i did not waken till nearly eleven o'clock, and having taken my bath i dressed myself slowly, made a good meal at midday, and altogether felt better than i had done for the last week.

as my appointment with beltrami was for half-past two i did not go to casa angello for my usual singing lesson, not wishing to see the signorina until i could tell her the good news that her lover was alive and well. it was true beltrami had asserted that the antidote would awaken the young man from his death-like slumber, but remembering that he had now been in this state of catalepsy for nearly a week, i felt doubtful as to the success of the experiment. however, a few hours would now decide the fate of pallanza for life or death, and in the event of the antidote acting according to the expectations of the marchese, i promised myself i should be the first to carry the joyful news of this wonderful resurrection to the signorina bianca.

when two o'clock struck i could no longer restrain my impatience, but set off without further delay to see beltrami at his apartments. he had just returned from the barracks, and was taking some biscuits and wine when i was announced, but jumped up when he saw me and came forward with outstretched hand,--

"eh! mon ami, i am delighted to see you! sit down, while i finish this small meal. will you have a glass of wine?"

"no, thank you, marchese!"

"then take a cigarette, there are some on that table."

the marchese returned to his wine and biscuits, while i lighted a cigarette, and lay down on the sofa.

"excuse me lying down, luigi, but our last night's experience has knocked me up terribly."

"you would never do for a soldier, signor hugo! i've been drilling some stupid recruits all the morning, and i feel perfectly fresh. ecco! i'm glad to see you, however, as i have some news to tell you."

"about pallanza?"

"eh? no! about madame morone."

"ah! she has found out we were at the vault?"

"dame! not a bit of it. she left verona by the five o'clock train last night."

"left verona!" i cried, rising hastily from my recumbent position. "why has she gone away?"

"eh! who knows?" replied beltrami, shrugging his shoulders. "she didn't even leave a message for me, her promised husband. i think, myself, the empty pillar of yesterday startled her. she evidently thought everything was discovered, therefore has gone to rome so that she can appeal to the king in case of trouble."

"and what are you going to do, marchese?"

"the best thing i can do under the circumstances. i have applied for, and obtained, leave of absence, so i will give this infernal tenor the antidote to-day, and start for rome by the night train."

"but when you arrive at rome?"

"i will see madame morone, and tell her that i removed the body of pallanza from the pillar."

"the body, beltrami! you forget pallanza is alive!"

"of course he is, but i'm not going to tell her that. cospetto! if she discovered that this devil of a tenor was still in existence my power over her would be gone, and she would not marry me. ecco!"

"but as pallanza will sing again, she is bound to find it out sooner or later."

"eh! no doubt, signor hugo; but by the time she finds out i hope to be married. in that case it does not matter. besides, i am going to make pallanza promise not to sing anywhere for a month."

"suppose he refuses?"

"he won't refuse. dame! he owes me something for bringing him into existence again."

"and what about the doctor?"

"he will soon be here," said beltrami, glancing at his watch; "i expect him every minute."

"will he keep this affair quiet?"

"per bacco! i should think so, mon ami. i ascertained that before i told him anything. not that i told him much, ma foi, no! i invented a delightful story about pallanza, which he swallowed as easily as i do this wine."

"and the story?"

"i have not the time to tell it to you, but it is a beautiful story, worthy of boccaccio. oh, he will keep his mouth shut, i promise you, hugo. he is a great friend of mine, and i never associate with those who talk of other people's business."

"have you the antidote, marchese?"

"here it is," said beltrami, rising and taking the small bottle from his desk near the window; "and, ma foi! here is the doctor coming up the street."

"how fond you are of french," i remarked, laughingly. "parisian ejaculations are never out of your mouth."

"one must ejaculate in some language, hugo, and i've been so often in paris that i've got into the trick in some way."

"what about london?"

"your city of fogs! eh! you know i cannot master your tongue, signor hugo. 'you are a beautiful mees; i loove you'--dio! what a difficulty i had in learning those two sentences."

"which are perfectly useless."

"i have not found them so. but here is signor avenza, the doctor i spoke of. good-day, for the second time, my friend. permit me to introduce signor hugo cranston, an englishman."

the doctor, a fat little man with a round smiling face and two twinkling black eyes, executed an elaborate bow, for which purpose he brought his feet smartly together in military fashion, and, having thus saluted me, rashly entered into a contest with the english language, which vanquished him at once.

"i spik inglis," he said, mincingly. then, with a gigantic effort, "gif me your tongue! ah! he is bad. dis writing is your cure. goot-day! i vil taake a leetle valk wis you agin."

signor avenza had evidently learned these choice english phrases for the purposes of his profession.

while this lesson in philology was going on the marchese had opened the door leading into the room where pallanza was concealed, and called to us to enter. both the doctor and myself, obeying the summons, went through the bedroom, and soon found ourselves by the couch, whereon lay the still form of the young man, with that terrible death-in-life look on his white face.

"see, avenza, this is what i spoke about," said beltrami, holding up a small phial filled with a red liquid. "it is the antidote to the poison which this pallanza was foolish enough to take."

"and all through a love disappointment," replied avenza, lifting his eyes. "ah! the poor young man!"

i now began to see the kind of story beltrami had told avenza to account for the condition of pallanza, and i must say it did credit to his powers of invention.

"the amount of the poison he took was ten drops." went on beltrami, uncorking the bottle, "so it will require ten drops of this antidote to revive him, but when the life is once more in him i suppose he will be weak."

"most certainly," answered avenza, nodding his head, "since you say he has been like this for nearly a week. but proceed, marchese, i am anxious to see the result of this antidote."

beltrami bent over the face of the unconscious man, and forced the teeth slightly apart with a spoon he held in his left hand. having done this, he poised the bottle over the pale lips, and began to pour the red liquid drop by drop into the mouth.

both avenza and myself bent forward eagerly to watch the operation, and held our breaths with anxiety as the marchese counted, slowly,--

"one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten!"

the body made no movement, and beltrami drew back, looking somewhat anxious.

"dio! i am afraid ten drops are not enough!"

"wait," said avenza, taking his watch out of his pocket, and placing his fingers on the pulse of the seemingly-dead man. "you cannot expect this antidote to act at once."

the minutes passed slowly, and we all three remained with our eyes eagerly watching for some sign of life on that still face, while avenza occasionally glanced at his chronometer.

"his pulse beats," he said at length in a low voice, "faintly, it is true, but still it beats."

i heaved a sigh of relief, but beltrami remained silently looking at the face of pallanza with an anxious frown.

"she cannot have given him fifteen," he muttered under his breath, "if so, he would have been dead by this time; but his pulse beats, so he is alive."

he looked irresolutely at the phial in his hand, and then turned to avenza, who was still counting the feeble pulsation of the blood.

"doctor, i will give him three more drops!"

"eh! and why not?" replied avenza, raising his eye-brows; "as that is an antidote a few drops more or less cannot kill him after the dose of poison he has taken."

the marchese made no further remark, but, bending forward again, he held the phial over the half-open mouth for the second time.

"one, two, three!"

this time the effect was magical; for after an interval of about two or three minutes, we saw a shudder run through the rigid body, the left arm jerked upward in a spasmodic manner, the face flushed crimson with the rush of blood once more flowing freely through the arteries, and at last the heavy eyelids lifted slowly. pallanza gazed at us with a dazed, unseeing expression, then some tremendous force seemed to take possession of the body, for a spasm of pain passed over his face, a choking cry issued from his lips, and in a moment he was shrieking, writhing, twisting, rolling and plunging about the bed like a demoniac. all the nerves and muscles which had been dead and inert for so many days were now waking again to life, and the agony which racked his frame from head to foot must have been truly terrible. both beltrami and myself made a step forward to hold down this agonized body, but avenza stopped us.

"the antidote is doing its work," he said rapidly; "the dead body is renewing its life throughout every particle. wait! wait! the paroxysm will soon pass away."

the doctor was right, for in a short time the writhing stopped, the cries grew fainter, and at last, with a heavy sigh, the young man sank back on the pillows in a state of exhaustion, on seeing which, both beltrami and the doctor ran out of the room to get some brandy, leaving me alone with this new lazarus. during their absence he opened his eyes, to which the light of sanity had now returned, and spoke in a feeble voice,--

"where am i?"

"with friends."

"and the contessa?"

"she is not here! you are quite safe! hush! do not speak, i beg of you."

pallanza gave me a look of gratitude, then, closing his eyes, relapsed into silence. avenza returned with a glass of weak brandy and water, which he gave to the young man in spoonfuls, 'while i went back into the sitting-room to see beltrami, whom i found standing by the window with a frown on his face.

"ebbene?" he asked, turning round.

"he is much better, and i think will soon be all right."

"that's a blessing. but what a nuisance! i want to go to rome to-night by the five o'clock train, but avenza tells me that pallanza will have to sleep for a few hours, so i won't have an opportunity of speaking to him."

"go with a light heart, my dear beltrami; i will arrange everything."

"you will?"

"yes; pallanza can sleep in that room for an hour or two, then i will get a fiacre and take him to his lodgings. no one shall come near him but myself, and when he is quite sensible i will make him promise all you want."

"bene! you are a good friend, my dear hugo," said the marchese, in a tone of relief; "but do you think he will do what you ask?"

"most certainly! i can force him to obey me."

"how so?"

"by threatening to tell signorina angello about his affair with madame morone. she knows nothing as yet, and pallanza is afraid of her knowing. witness the lie he told about that note at the ezzelino, asking him to come to the palazzo!"

beltrami, with his cynical estimate of the contessa's character, was not at all disturbed by this somewhat blunt speech, but laughed cheerfully.

"eh! hugo. i think i will make you. italian after all. your plan is a good one, mon ami, so make pallanza promise not to sing anywhere for a month, to leave verona and keep quiet. by that time i will be married to the contessa, and all will be well."

"i will arrange everything as you desire, luigi."

"excellent! then that trouble is off my mind."

at this moment the doctor entered, rubbing his fat hands together with an expression of glee.

"eh, he sleeps, this young man," he said in a satisfied tone, "he will sleep for one, two, three hours, then, if you like, marchese, you can send him to his own house."

"signor hugo will attend to all that, avenza."

"bene! well, marchese, à revederci! and you, signor."

"wait a moment, signor avenza; i am coming too."

"where are you going! hugo?" asked beltrami, looking at me in some surprise, and nodding his head in the direction of pallanza. i crossed over to him, and while avenza was getting his hat, whispered in his ear,--

"i am going to the ezzelino to find out pallanza's address, so as to know where to take him."

"ah! a good idea! i will wait here till you return."

i accompanied signor avenza to the piazza vittorio emanuele, where we parted. i then went to the teatro ezzelino and found out pallanza's address from the stage-door keeper. while i was returning to beltrami's rooms i saw peppino, and arranged with him to be at the via cartoni at seven o'clock that evening to take a sick gentleman away. at first peppino objected, being, like all italians, terribly afraid of disease, but i soon quieted his objections, and he promised to call as directed.

on returning to beltrami i found him packing up, and at five o'clock he took his departure for rome, promising to write me immediately he arrived, and in return i assured him i would let him know everything as soon as i arranged matters with pallanza.

that young man slept until nearly seven, when he woke up and began to ask me questions as to where he was. i insisted upon his keeping quiet, telling him i was a doctor, and when peppino arrived with his fiacre i wrapped him up in his cloak so as to hide his stage costume, and helped him downstairs to the carriage. we soon arrived at his lodgings, where, dismissing peppino, i made pallanza go to bed at once, and gave him a light supper, together with some weak brandy and water. after this he fell asleep, and i sat watching by his bed all night, wondering why i was such a fool as to do all this for a cynical man of the world like beltrami, who would probably laugh at my good nature when all was over. yet there was something about luigi beltrami which i liked; and in spite of his affected cynicism and his extraordinarily loose notions of right and wrong, i believe that he had a sincere regard for me, which regard i considered not the least curious part of his whimsical nature, seeing that my character was the antithesis of his own in every way. perhaps it was by the law of contrast, or illustrated inversely the saying that "like draws to like;" but whatever was the reason, though we had nothing in common either in nationality or character, yet we were friends, and i leave this problem to be worked out by those who deny that such an enigma can exist.