A mistake would have been fatal. More than once, as
tufts of grass came out in my hand or my foot slipped in the wet
notches of the rock, I thought that I was gone. But I struggled
upward, and at last I reached a ledge several feet deep and
covered with soft green moss, where I could lie unseen, in the
most perfect comfort. There I was stretched, when you, my dear
Watson, and all your following were investigating in the most
sympathetic and inefficient manner the circumstances of my
death.
"At last, when you had all formed your inevitable and totally
erroneous conclusions, you departed for the hotel, and I was left
alone. l had imagined that I had reached the end of my adven-
tures, but a very unexpected occurrence showed me that there
were surprises still in store for me. A huge rock, falling from
above, boomed past me, struck the path, and bounded over into
the chasm. For an instant I thought that it was an accident, but a
moment later, looking up, I saw a man's head against the
darkening sky, and another stone struck the very ledge upon
which I was stretched, within a foot of my head.
Pages:
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28