Edmond Dantès
fully understanding the promptings of your own dear heart. Only misery
can follow the union of two souls not in perfect accord, not entirely
devoted the one to the other. I am much older than you, Haydee, and my
sufferings have aged me still more than years. I am a sad and weary
man. You, on the contrary, stand just upon the threshold of existence;
the world and its pleasures are all before you. Think, my child, think
deeply before you pronounce the irrevocable vow."
Haydee threw herself passionately upon Monte-Cristo's breast.
"My lord," she cried, in accents broken by extreme agitation and
emotion, "am I not your slave?"
"No, Haydee," answered the Count, his bosom heaving and his eyes
lighting up with a strange flash, "you are free, your fate rests in your
own hands."
"Then," said the young girl, ardently, "I will decide it this very
instant. I accept my freedom that I may voluntarily offer myself to you,
my love, my husband. You have suffered. Granted. So have I. Your
sufferings have aged you; mine have transformed a child into a woman--a
woman who knows the promptings of her heart, who knows that it beats for
you, and you alone in all the world. My lord, I resign myself to you. Do
you accept the gift?"
As Haydee concluded, her beautiful eyes were suffused with tears and her
whole frame quivered with intense excitement.
Monte-Cristo bent down and kissed her upon the forehead.
"Haydee, my own Haydee," he said, with a slight tremor in his manly
voice, "I accept the gift. Be my wife, the wife of Monte-Cristo, and no
effort of mine shall be wanting to assure your happiness."
At that moment there was a sinister flash in the heavens, that were as
yet without a cloud. The livid light shot downward to the water and
seemingly plunged to the depths of the Mediterranean.
The Count gave a start and drew his beloved Haydee closer to him; the
frightened girl trembled from head to foot and clung to him for
protection.
"Oh! my lord, my lord," she murmured, "does Heaven disapprove of our
plighted troth?"
"Calm yourself, Haydee," answered Monte-Cristo. "The lightning is God's
seal, and He has set it upon our betrothal."
The flash was now repeated and was succeeded by several others of
increased intensity, but as yet no thunder rolled and there was not the
slightest indication of an approaching storm.
Monte-Cristo took Haydee's hand and led her to the side of the yacht.
Not a single wave wrinkled the surface of the sea for miles and miles;
the water seemed asleep, while down upon it the moon poured a flood of
silvery radiance. The stars, too, were beaming brightly. Still, however,
the intense lightning shot athwart the placid sky. It had become almost
incessant. Monte-Cristo could not account for the bewildering
phenomenon. He summoned the captain of the Alcyon and said to him:
"Giacomo, you have sailed the Mediterranean all your life, have you
not?"
"All my life, Excellency," replied he, touching his cap.
"Have you ever before seen lightning such as this on a calm night?"
"Never, Excellency."
"It certainly cannot be heat-lightning."
"I think not, Excellency. Heat-lightning has a quicker flash and is much
less intense."
"What do you suppose it portends?"
"I can form no idea, Excellency."
"Oh! my lord," said Haydee, "a terrible storm is coming, I am sure; I
feel a premonition Of approaching danger. I pray you, guard against it."
"Nonsense, my child," returned Monte-Cristo, with a laugh that, in spite
of all his efforts at self-control, betrayed nervous agitation and an
undefinable dread. "The sky is clear, the moon is shining brilliantly
and the sea is altogether tranquil; if a storm were coming it would not
be so. Banish your fears and reassure yourself; the lightning is but a
freak of nature."
The captain, too, was disturbed, though he could give himself no
satisfactory reason for his uneasiness.
Ali, with the characteristic superstition of the Nubian race, had
prostrated himself upon the deck, and was making signs the Moslems of
his country use to drive away malignant spirits.
The night, however, passed without accident, though the singular
lightning continued for several hours.
Next morning the sun rose, encircled by a ruddy band, fringed on the
outer rim with a faint yellow, while its beams had a sullen glare
instead of their normal brilliancy. The lightning of the previous night
was absent, but soon another and not less disquieting phenomenon
manifested itself; as far as the eye could reach the sea seemed boiling,
and, at intervals, a puff, as if of vapor, would filter through the
waves, rising and disappearing in the heavens. Meanwhile the wind had
fallen, and amid an almost dead calm the sails of the Alcyon hung
listlessly, with only an occasional flapping. The yacht moved forward,
indeed, but so slowly that it scarcely appeared to move at all.
Monte-Cristo and Haydee came on deck at dawn, but the young girl
displayed such terror at the unwonted aspect of the sun and the sea that
the Count speedily persuaded her to return with him to the cabin. There
she cowered upon a divan, hiding her face in her hands and moaning
piteously. Her fiance, distressed at her condition, endeavored to soothe
and comfort her, but utterly without avail; her fears could neither be
banished nor allayed. At length he threw himself on a rug at her feet,
and, disengaging her hands from her face, drew them about his neck;
Haydee clasped him frantically and clung to him as if she deemed that
embrace a final one.
As they were sitting thus, the Alcyon received a sudden and violent
shock that shook the noble yacht from stem to stern. Instantly there was
a sound of hurrying feet on deck, and the captain could be heard
shouting hoarsely to the sailors.
Monte-Cristo leaped up and caught Haydee in his arms. At that moment Ali
darted down the companion-way and stood trembling before his master.
"What was that shock?" demanded the Count, hurriedly.
The agitated Nubian made a sign signifying he did not know, but that all
was yet safe.
"Remain with your mistress, Ali," said Monte-Cristo. "I am going to see
what is the matter."
"Oh! no, no," cried Haydee, imploringly, as the Count placed her again
on the divan and was moving away. "Oh! no, no; do not leave me, my lord,
or I shall die!"
Ashy pale, Haydee arose from the divan, and cast herself on her knees at
Monte-Cristo's feet.
"Swear to me, at least, that you will not needlessly expose yourself to
danger," she uttered, in a pleading tone.
"I swear it," answered the Count. "Ali will faithfully guard you while I
am gone," he added, "and ere you can realize my absence, I shall be
again at your side."
With these words he tore himself away and hastened to the deck.
There a scene met his eye as unexpected as it was appalling. The entire
surface of the Mediterranean was aglow with phosphorescence, and the sun
was veiled completely by a heavy cloud that seemed to cover the whole
expanse of the sky. This cloud was not black, but of a bloody hue, and
the atmosphere was so densely charged with sulphur that it was almost
impossible to breathe. The sea was boiling more furiously than ever, and
the puffs of vapor that had before only occasionally filtered through
the waves now leaped up incessantly, each puff attended with a slight
explosion; the vapor was grayish when it first arose from the water, but
as it ascended it became red, mingling at length with the bloody cloud
that each moment acquired greater density. The wind blew fitfully,
sometimes amounting to a gale and then utterly vanishing without the
slightest warning. Soon the bloody cloud seemed to settle of its own
weight upon the sea, growing so thick that the eye could not penetrate
it, and a few feet from the yacht all was inky darkness.
Monte-Cristo hurried to the captain, who was endeavoring to quiet the
superstitious fears of the sailors. Drawing him aside, he said, in a low
tone:
"Giacomo, we are in frightful danger. This elemental disturbance is
volcanic, and how it will end cannot be foretold. No doubt an earthquake
is devastating the nearest land, or will do so before many hours have
elapsed. At any moment rocks or islands may arise from the sea, and
obstruct our passage. All we can do is to hold ourselves in readiness
for whatever calamity may happen, and make for Crete as rapidly as
possible, with the hope of eventually getting beyond the volcanic zone.
Do not enlighten the crew as to the cause of the disturbance; did they
know, or even suspect it, they could not be controlled, but would become
either stupefied or reckless. Try to convince them that we are simply in
the midst of a severe electrical storm that will speedily exhaust its
fury and subside. Now, to work, and remember that everything depends
upon your courage and resolution."
Giacomo rejoined the sailors, who were huddled together at the stern of
the yacht like so many frightened sheep. He spoke to them, doing his
utmost to reassure them, and ultimately succeeded so well that they
resumed their neglected duties with some show of alacrity and even
cheerfulness.
Meanwhile, Monte-Cristo, with folded arms and an outward show of
calmness, was pacing the deck as if nothing unusual were in progress,
and his demeanor was not without its effect on the sailors, who looked
upon him with a species of awe and admiration. At times he went below to
cheer the drooping spirits of his beloved Haydee, but speedily returned
that the influence of his presence might not be lost.
Thus the day passed. A night of painful suspense succeeded it, during
which not a soul on board the Alcyon thought of sleeping. Nothing,
however, occurred, save that the intense lightning of the previous night
was renewed. Toward eleven o'clock the breeze freshened to such an
extent that the yacht sped along on her course with great fleetness.
In the morning the sun arose amid a purple haze, and the Mediterranean
presented a more tumultuous and threatening aspect than it had the
preceding day. The breeze was still blowing stiffly, and the lightning
continued. Giacomo informed Monte-Cristo that unless a calm should
suddenly come on they would certainly arrive at Crete by noon. The
sailors, he added, were in good spirits, and might be relied upon,
though they were much fatigued by reason of their unceasing labor.
At ten o'clock the man at the wheel hurriedly summoned the captain to
his side, and, with a look of terror and bewilderment, directed his
attention to the compass, the needle of which no longer pointed to the
north, but was dancing a mad dance, not remaining stationary for a
single instant. To complicate the situation still further, the sun was
suddenly obscured, absolute darkness invading both sea and sky. Only
when the vivid lightning tore the dense clouds apart were those on board
the Alcyon enabled to catch a glimpse of what was going on about them,
and that glimpse was but momentary. Thunder peals were now added to the
terrors of the time, while the yacht tossed and plunged on angry,
threatening billows. Showers of sparks and glowing cinders, as if from
some mighty conflagration, poured down into the water, striking its
surface with an ominous hiss; they resembled meteors, and their
brilliancy was augmented by the surrounding gloom. Rain also began to
descend, not in drops, but in broad sheets and with the roar of a
cataract; in a moment everybody on the Alcyon's deck was drenched to the
skin.
Haydee had not ventured from the cabin since the first day of the
elemental commotion; in obedience to his master's commands, Ali
constantly watched over her whenever the Count was facing the strange
storm with Giacomo and the sailors.
As the captain approached the man at the wheel, Monte-Cristo fixed his