And he chuckled, while Christine gave a cry of pain. Erik had evidently recovered the bag from her.
At that moment, the viscount could not help uttering an exclamation of impotent rage.
“Why, what’s that?” said the monster. “Did you hear, Christine?”
“No, no,” replied the poor girl. “I heard nothing.”
“I thought I heard a cry.”
“A cry! Are you going mad, Erik? Whom do you expect to give a cry, in this house? … I cried out, because you hurt me! I heard nothing.”
“I don’t like the way you said that! … You’re trembling. … You’re quite excited. … You’re lying! … That was a cry, there was a cry! … There is someone in the torture-chamber! … Ah, I understand now!”
“There is no one there, Erik!”
“I understand!”
“No one!”
“The man you want to marry, perhaps!”
“I don’t want to marry anybody, you know I don’t.”
Another nasty chuckle.
“Well, it won’t take long to find out. Christine, my love, we need not open the door to see what is happening in the torture-chamber. Would you like to see? Would you like to see? Look here! If there is someone, if there is really someone there, you will see the invisible window light up at the top, near the ceiling. We need only draw the black curtain and put out the light in here. There, that’s it. …