she continued walking in the gallery, till evening threw its melancholy twilight through the painted casements, and deepened the gloom of the oak wainscoting around her; while the distant perspective of the corridor was so much obscured, as to be discernible only by the glimmering window, that terminated it.
along the vaulted halls and passages below, peals of laughter echoed faintly, at intervals, to this remote part of the castle, and seemed to render the succeeding stillness more dreary.emily, however, unwilling to return to her more forlorn chamber, whither annette was not yet come, still paced the gallery.as she passed the door of the apartment, where she had once dared to lift the veil, which discovered to her a spectacle so horrible, that she had never after remembered it, but with emotions of indescribable awe, this remembrance suddenly recurred.it now brought with it reflections more terrible, than it had yet done, which the late conduct of montoni occasioned; and, hastening to quit the gallery, while she had power to do so, she heard a sudden step behind her.--it might be that of annette; but, turning fearfully to look, she saw, through the gloom, a tall figure following her, and all the horrors of that chamber rushed upon her mind.in the next moment, she found herself clasped in the arms of some person, and heard a deep voice murmur in her ear.
when she had power to speak, or to distinguish articulated sounds, she demanded who detained her.
'it is i,' replied the voice--'why are you thus alarmed?'
she looked on the face of the person who spoke, but the feeble light, that gleamed through the high casement at the end of the gallery, did not permit her to distinguish the features.
'whoever you are,' said emily, in a trembling voice, 'for heaven's sake let me go!'
'my charming emily,' said the man, 'why will you shut yourself up in this obscure place, when there is so much gaiety below? return with me to the cedar parlour, where you will be the fairest ornament of the party;--you shall not repent the exchange.'