. The sorceress of Rome. e stared at the man before strange sensation had come over him. His brain seemed tobe on fire. His resistance was vanquished. He could not havegone, had he wished to. The night was still. The silence was rendered even moreprofoxmd by the rustling of the storm among the leaves. Suddenly Eckhardts hand went to his head. He startedto rise from his kneeling position, staggered to his feet, then asif struck by lightning he fell heavily against the mosaic of thefloor. 220 THE QUEEN OF NIGHT With a wild shriek of terror, Theodora had risen to herfeet — then she sank bac
. The sorceress of Rome. e stared at the man before strange sensation had come over him. His brain seemed tobe on fire. His resistance was vanquished. He could not havegone, had he wished to. The night was still. The silence was rendered even moreprofoxmd by the rustling of the storm among the leaves. Suddenly Eckhardts hand went to his head. He startedto rise from his kneeling position, staggered to his feet, then asif struck by lightning he fell heavily against the mosaic of thefloor. 220 THE QUEEN OF NIGHT With a wild shriek of terror, Theodora had risen to herfeet — then she sank back on the couch staring speechlesslyat what was passing before her. The gaunt form of a monk,clad in the habit of the hermits of Mount Aventine,had rushedinto the grotto, just as Eckhardt fell from the effect of the him up, as if he were a mere toy, the monk rushed outinto the open and disappeared with his burden, while foureyes followed him in speechless dread and dismay. 2SI CHAPTER III THE ELIXIR OF LOVE. T was late on the followingevening, when in the hermitageof Nilus of Gaeta, Eckhardtwoke from the death-like stuporwhich had botmd his limbs sincethe terrible scenes of the previ-ous night; Thanks to the anti-dotes applied by the friar as soonas he reached the open, thedeadly effect of the poison hadbeen stemmed ere it had time to penetrate Eckhardts system,but even despite this timely precaution, the benumbing effectof the drug was not to be avoided, and during the time whenthe stupor maintained its sway Nilus had not for a momentabandoned the side of his patient. A burning thirst consximedhim, as he awoke. Raising himself on his elbows and vainlyendeavouring to reconcile his surroundings, the monk who wasseated at the foot of his roughly improvised bed rose andbrought him some water. It was Nilus himself, and only afterconvincing himself that the state of the Margraves conditionwas such as to warrant his immediately satisfying the flood ofinquiries addressed
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