Miss Violet Page had recovered from her sudden swoon, and although still
very pale she sat gazing calmly at the silver jewel casket, which Nick
was again displaying.
Somewhat to Nick's surprise, considering the girl's abrupt collapse upon
first beholding the casket, Miss Page had just declared that she had
never seen it before that evening.
"You never saw it before?" exclaimed Nick, almost incredulously.
"Never until you produced it from your desk a few minutes ago,"
reiterated Violet.
"Why, then, were you so overcome upon seeing it?"
"I will tell you why, Detective Carter, yet I fear that you will think
me very weak and foolish to have been so seriously affected."
"No; I think not."
"I had a terrible dream last night, sir," Violet now explained. "I
dreamed that I was alone in an enormous graveyard at midnight, with a
full moon revealing the dismal surroundings, the dark tombs, the
staring, white headstones and the silent graves."
"Not very cheerful--certainly," smiled Nick.
"What followed was infinitely more terrible," continued Violet, with an
irrepressible shudder.
"What was that?"
"I dreamed that I saw a grave near which I was standing suddenly begin
to open, as if a living being were pushing up the ground from within.
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