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Hill feinted with his left, and as Jack uncovered to guard, he caught him fairly on the lower left ribs, by a blow from his mighty right fist, that sounded as one of the by-standers expressed it "like striking a hollow log with a maul." The color in Jack's face paled.
Now he advanced the flat head little by little towards Jack's naked breast. At last it was so close that the cobra's tongue, darting in and out, was touching the lad's body. Ah! that was horrible. To feel the cold, forked tongue playing upon the warm flesh above the beating heart, that heart which would be silenced for ever were but the keen fangs advanced an inch or so farther.
We shall only be horrified without being able to do any good, for I fear they are going to kill them." Jack's face wore an expression of deep compassion as he said, in a low voice, "No fear, Ralph; the sufferings of these poor fellows are over long ago." I turned with a start as he spoke, and, glancing at the men, who were now quite near to the spot where we stood, saw that they were all dead.
"We must be alone together, under the stars, for our souls to see," Imogen said to herself, while she poured the coffee, while she met Jack's eye, while, beneath this highest thought, the lesser comment of "Snake!" made itself heard. "What's become of that interesting girl who had the rival club, Imogen?" Rose asked. "The one you squashed." "We make her very welcome when she comes to ours."
In spite of this discouragement my brother was quite determined to learn the art of defending himself with a knife, and he would often go out into the plantation and practise for an hour with a tree for an opponent, and try to capture Jack's unpremeditated art of darting hither and thither about his enemy and making his deadly strokes.
"There's no false pride about Jack," said Grim, gloating over the weird mount. "Whatever is he doing in here?" "Liquid refreshment," said Rogers between a gulp and a gasp. "Oh, Jack, was it for this and this that you gave us the go-by?" "This place doesn't seem Jack's form somehow," said Wilson, looking doubtfully up and down the little inn. "Ring him out, Wilson," said Grim.
But it oppressed him. His pessimism resented it. He hated joy, and the evidences of joy in others. There was real pleasure for him in Diamond Jack's hectoring denunciations. It was something which appealed to him. Besides, he could see the gambler was harassed, perhaps afraid of the sheriff himself. He even envied him his fear.
Sometimes he accompanied us; but more often he was with Ala and her suite, including her uneludable satellite, Ingra. "I bless my stars that he doesn't favor us with his delightful company," was Jack's comment, when he saw Ingra tagging along after Ala and Edmund. I privately believed that Ingra had his spies among our attendants, but I was careful not to mention my suspicions to Jack.
I remember a song that Aunt Kitty, the cook at Master Jack's, used to sing. It ran something like this: There'll be no more talk about Monday, by and by, But every day will be Sunday, by and by. The old woman was singing, or rather humming, it one day, and old lady McGee heard her. She was busy getting her dinner, and I suppose never realized she was singing such an incendiary piece, when old Mrs.
After a second glass, Jack said, "I don't suppose it would do any good, but I should like to see Mavick." And then, showing the drift of his thoughts, "I wonder what Carmen will do?" "I should say that will depend upon the will," replied the Major. "She is a good-hearted woman," and Jack's tone was one of inquiry. "She hasn't any, Jack. Not the least bit of a heart.
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