Broken Links Author:Alexander Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: CHAPTER III. IN THE LIBRARY. THE prosperous banker of Langford was the second or third cousin of Randal. In his boyhood they had been friendly, and Randal wa... more »s always welcome at the banker's table, but after Randal Palliser's hasty and unfortunate marriage a curious dislike to his relative grew up in his mind. Richard Egerton or his son would inherit after him if he died without a legitimate male heir, and by his own folly he was cut off from the chance of having one so long as the adventuress who had entrapped him lived; for, shameful as her life had been previously, she was careful to give her unfortunate husband no chance of getting rid of her. He had to buy freedom from her presence and from continual annoyance at a high price, and the sense of relief consequent on her removal from this mortal scene was almost intoxicating. He was anxious to marry, yet half afraid to risk making the all-important choice. He must find someone whose past was known to all among whom she lived. She must be young, too, and fair—fair with the beauty of health—and well born. Palliser was a passionate admirer of beauty and eager in the pursuit of whatever was the whim of the moment; two weaknesses which had betrayed him into the galling position he had endured for more thanseven years. But that was all over now, and he felt once more lord of himself and able to think of the future with hope, and the sunshine of his mood was reflected on all, down to the humblest groom in his hitherto neglected stables. The days which intervened between this memorable Monday and the promised visit to Mervyn Hall went swiftly, for Janet was a busy creature and rarely found her day quite long enough. Indeed, she was apt to get her time into a tangle from undertaking rather more than she was able to accomplish, and ...« less