Then I swallowed the other, and we stood facing one another in silence for a minute or more, waiting to see which was to live and which was to die.

Shall I ever forget the look which came over his face when the first warning pangs told him that the poison was in his system?
I laughed as I saw it, and held Lucy's marriage ring in front of his eyes.

It was but for a moment, for the action of the alkaloid is rapid.

A spasm of pain contorted his features; he threw his hands out in front of him, staggered, and then, with a hoarse cry, fell heavily upon the floor.

I turned him over with my foot, and placed my hand upon his heart.