218 THE BRIGHTON ROAD 



" ' It is the weapon with which the first dame of 

 the house of Rookwood was stabbed,' said Alan, with 

 a grim smile : 



' Which whoso findeth in the tomb 

 Shall clutch until the hour of doom ; 

 And when 'tis grasped by hand of clay 

 The curse of blood shall pass away. 



So saith the rhyme. Have you seen enough ? ' 



" ' No,' said Lady Rookwood, precipitating herself 

 into the marble coffin. ' That weapon shall be mine.' 



" ' Come forth — come forth,' cried Alan. ' My arm 

 trembles — I cannot support the lid.' 



'"I will have it. though I grasp it to eternity,' 

 shrieked Lady Rookwood, vainly endeavouring to 

 wrest away the dagger, which was fastened, together 

 with the linen upon which it lay, by some adhesive 

 substance to the bottom of the shell. 



"'At this moment Alan Rookwood happened to 

 cast his eye upward, and he then beheld what filled 

 him with new terror. The axe of the sable statue was 

 poised above its head, as in the act to strike him. 

 Some secret machinery, it was evident, existed between 

 the sarcophagus lid and this mysterious image. But 

 in the first impulse of his alarm Alan abandoned his 

 hold of the slab, and it sunk slowly downwards. He 

 uttered a loud cry as it moved. Lady Rookwood 

 heard this crv. She raised herself at the same moment 

 — the dagger was in her hand — she pressed it against 

 the lid, out its downward force was too great to be 

 withstood. The light was within the sarcophagus and 

 Alan could discern her features. The expression was 

 terrible. She uttered one shriek, and the lid closed 

 for ever. 



" Alan was in total darkness. The light had been 

 enclosed with Lady Rookwood. There was something 

 so horrible in her probable fate that even he shuddered 

 as he thought upon it. Exerting all his remaining 

 strength, he essayed to raise the lid ; but now it was 

 more firmly closed than ever. It defied all his power. 



