Near a fortnight had elapsed without producing any appearance of from the marquis, when one night, long after the hour of , Julia was by the bell of the . She knew it was not the hour customary for prayer, and she listened to the sounds, which rolled through the deep silence of the , with strong surprise and terror. Presently she heard the doors of several cells creak on their hinges, and the sound of quick footsteps in the passages—and through the of her door she passing lights. The whispering noise of steps increased, and every person of the monastery seemed to have awakened. Her terror heightened; it occurred to her that the marquis had surrounded the abbey with his people, in the design of forcing her from her retreat; and she arose in haste, with an intention of going to the of Madame de Menon, when she heard a gentle tap at the door. Her enquiry of who was there, was answered in the voice of madame, and her fears were quickly dissipated, for she learned the bell was a summons to attend a dying , who was going to the high altar, there to receive extreme unction.
She quitted the chamber with madame. In her way to the church, the gleam of on the walls, and the glimpse which her eye often caught of the friars in their long black habits, silently through the narrow passages, with the solemn of the bell, to imagination, and to impress her heart with sacred . But the church exhibited a scene of solemnity, such as she had never before witnessed. Its gloomy were imperfectly seen by the rays of tapers from the high altar, which shed a gleam over the remote parts of the fabric, and produced large masses of light and shade, striking and in their effect.
While she gazed, she heard a distant chanting rise through the aisles; the sounds in low on the ear, and drew nearer and nearer, till a sudden blaze of light issued from one of the portals, and the procession entered. The organ instantly sounded a high and solemn , and the voices rising altogether swelled the sacred strain. In front appeared the Padre , with slow and measured steps, bearing the holy cross. Immediately followed a litter, on which lay the dying person covered with a white veil, borne along and surrounded by veiled in white, each carrying in her hand a lighted . Last came the friars, two and two, cloathed in black, and each bearing a light.
When they reached the high altar, the bier was rested, and in a few moments the ceased. 'The Abate now approached to perform the unction; the veil of the dying nun was lifted—and Julia discovered her beloved Cornelia! Her was already impressed with the image of death, but her eyes brightened with a faint gleam of recollection, when they upon Julia, who felt a cold thrill run through her frame, and leaned for support on madame. Julia now for the first time distinguished the unhappy lover of Cornelia, on whose features was depictured the of his heart, and who hung pale and silent over the bier. The ceremony being finished, the anthem struck up; the bier was lifted, when Cornelia faintly moved her hand, and it was again rested upon the steps of the altar. In a few minutes the music ceased, when lifting her heavy eyes to her lover, with an expression of tenderness and grief, she attempted to speak, but the sounds died on her closing lips. A faint smile passed over her countenance, and was succeeded by a fine devotional glow; she folded her hands upon her , and with a look of resignation, raising towards heaven her eyes, in which now sunk the last sparkles of expiring life—her soul departed in a short deep sigh.
Her lover sinking back, endeavoured to his emotions, but the deep which his breast betrayed his anguish, and the tears of every spectator bedewed the sacred spot where beauty, sense, and expired.
The organ now swelled in mournful harmony; and the voices of the assembly chanted in choral strain, a low and solemn to the spirit of the departed.
Madame hurried Julia, who was almost as lifeless as her departed friend, from the church. A death so sudden heightened the grief which separation would otherwise have occasioned. It was the nature of Cornelia's to wear a changeful but flattering aspect. Though she had long been declining, her decay was so gradual and imperceptible as to the of her friends into security. It was otherwise with herself; she was conscious of the change, but forbore to them with the knowledge of the truth. The hour of her dissolution was sudden, even to herself; but it was composed, and even happy. In the death of Cornelia, Julia seemed to mourn again that of Hippolitus. Her decease appeared to dissolve the last tie which connected her with his memory.
In one of the friars of the convent, madame was surprized to find the father who had confessed the dying Vincent. His appearance revived the remembrance of the scene she had witnessed at the castle of Mazzini; and the last words of Vincent, combined with the circumstances which had since occurred, renewed all her curiosity and . But his appearance excited more sensations than those of wonder. She lest he should be by the marquis, to whom he was known, and thus be induced to use his interest with the Abate for the restoration of Julia.
From the walls of the monastery, Julia now never ventured to stray. In the gloom of evening she sometimes stole into the , and often lingered at the grave of Cornelia, where she wept for Hippolitus, as well as for her friend. One evening, during vespers, the bell of the convent was suddenly rang out; the Abate, whose countenance expressed at once astonishment and displeasure, suspended the service, and quitted the altar. The whole congregation repaired to the hall, where they learned that a friar, retiring to the convent, had seen a troop of armed men advancing through the wood; and not doubting they were the people of the marquis, and were approaching with hostile intention, had thought it necessary to give the alarm. The Abate a , and thence discovered through the trees a glittering of arms, and in the succeeding moment a band of men issued from a dark part of the wood, into a long avenue which immediately fronted the spot where he stood. The of was now distinctly heard; and Julia, sinking with terror, distinguished the marquis heading the troops, which, soon after separating in two divisions, surrounded the monastery. The gates were immediately secured; and the Abate, descending from the turret, assembled the friars in the hall, where his voice was soon heard above every other part of the . The terror of Julia made her forgetful of the Padre's promise, and she wished to fly for to the deep belonging to the monastery, which wound under the woods. Madame, whose furnished her with a just knowledge of the Abate's character, founded her security on his pride. She therefore Julia from attempting to with the honesty of a servant who had the keys of the , and advised her to rely on the effect of the Abate's towards the marquis. While madame endeavoured to her to composure, a message from the Abate required her attendance. She obeyed, and he bade her follow him to a room which was directly over the gates of the monastery. From thence she saw her father, accompanied by the Duke de Luovo; and as her spirits died away at the sight, the marquis called furiously to the Abate to deliver her instantly into his hands, threatening, if she was detained, to force the gates of the monastery. At this threat the countenance of the Abate grew dark: and leading Julia forcibly to the window, from which she had shrunk back, 'Impious menacer!' said he, 'eternal be upon thee! From this moment we expel thee from all the rights and communities of our church. and daring as you are, your threats I defy—Look here,' said he, pointing to Julia, 'and learn that you are in my power; for if you dare to violate these sacred walls, I will proclaim aloud, in the face of day, a secret which shall make your heart's blood run cold; a secret which involves your honour, , your very existence. Now triumph and in impious menace!' The marquis started involuntarily at this speech, and his features underwent a sudden change, but he endeavoured to recover himself, and to conceal his confusion. He hesitated for a few moments, uncertain how to act—to desist from violence was to confess himself conscious of the threatened secret; yet he dreaded to the resentment of the Abate, whose menaces his own heart too surely seconded. At length—'All that you have uttered,' said he, 'I despise as the dastardly of cunning. Your new insults add to the desire of recovering my daughter, that of punishing you. I would proceed to instant violence, but that would now be an imperfect revenge. I shall, therefore, withdraw my forces, and appeal to a higher power. Thus shall you be compelled at once to restore my daughter and your scandalous of my honor.' Saying this, the turned his horse from the gates, and his people following him, quickly withdrew, leaving the Abate in conquest, and Julia lost in astonishment and doubtful joy. When she recounted to madame the particulars of the conference, she dwelt with emphasis on the threats of the Abate; but madame, though her was heightened at every word, very well understood how the secret, whatever it was, had been obtained. The confessor of Vincent she had already observed in the monastery, and there was no doubt that he had disclosed whatever could be collected from the dying words of Vincent. She knew, also, that the secret would never be published, unless as a punishment for immediate violence, it being one of the first principles of monastic duty, to observe a religious upon all matters to them in .
When the first tumult of Julia's emotions , the joy which the sudden departure of the marquis occasioned yielded to . He had threatened to appeal to a higher power, who would compel the Abate to surrender her. This menace excited a just terror, and there remained no means of avoiding the tyranny of the marquis but by quitting the monastery. She therefore requested an audience of the Abate; and having represented the danger of her present situation, she intreated his permission to depart in quest of a safer retreat. The Abate, who well knew the marquis was wholly in his power, smiled at the repetition of his menaces, and denied her request, under of his having now become responsible for her to the church. He bade her be comforted, and promised her his protection; but his assurances were given in so distant and a manner, that Julia left him with fears rather increased than . In crossing the hall, she observed a man hastily enter it, from an opposite door. He was not in the habit of the order, but was up in a cloak, and seemed to wish concealment. As she passed he raised his head, and Julia discovered—her father! He at her a look of vengeance; but before she had time even to think, as if suddenly himself, he covered his face, and rushed by her. Her trembling frame could scarcely support her to the apartment of madame, where she sunk speechless upon a chair, and the terror of her look alone the agony of her mind. ............