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Doinding stairs he drew h-cut stones see past in the dark had a curious beauty

Then he unlocked a thick iron-studded wooden door and, giving over his heavy key ring to e and barren room

"You are now my heir, as I told you," he said "You’ll take possession of this house and all my treasure But you’ll do as I say first"

The barred s gave a limitless view of the ain as if it were spreading its arms:

"Ah, later you may drink your fill of all you see," he said He turned e heap of wood that lay in the center of the floor

"Listen carefully," he said "For I’estured to the wood offhandedly "And there are things you must know You’re ih to your first hu, no matter how delicious, before the victim’s heart ceases to beat"

"In years to coreat moment, but for the present pass the cup to time just before it’s empty Or you may pay heavily for your pride"

"But why are you leavingto hiI feltphysically beaten

He pulled away so easily thatat thee quality of the pain It wasn’t like mortal pain

He stopped, however, and pointed to the stones of the wall opposite I could see that one very large stone had been dislodged and lay a foot from the unbroken surface around it

"Grasp that stone," he said, "and pull it out of the wall"

"But I can’t," I said "It h -- "

"Pull it out!" He pointed with one of his long bony fingers and grimaced so that I tried to do it as he said

To my pure astonishment I was able tojust large enough for a ave a dry cackling laugh and nodded his head

"There, eway that leads to my treasure," he said "Do with my treasure as you like, and with all my earthly property But for now, Iether so fiercely they were soon burning with bright small flames

This he tossed at the heap, and the pitch in it caused the fire to leap up at once, throwing an i and the stone walls

I gasped and stepped back The riot of yellow and orange color enchanted and frightened h I felt it, did not cause me a sensation I understood There was no natural alarm that I should be burned by it Rather the warmth was exquisite and I realized for the first ti on me and the fire ain, that hollow, gasping laugh, and started to dance about in the light, his thin legs snaking hi, with the white face of a man He crooked his arms over his head, bent his torso and his knees, and turned round and round as he circled the fire

"Mon Dieu!" I whispered I was reeling Horrifying itlike this, but now in the flickering glare he was a spectacle that drew s, the pantaloons he wore, the tattered shirt