light!  The unnamed Horror was behind her in his room.  The unnamed Horror was looking at her through his open door.  She found the match-box, and lit the candle on her table—­lit the two other candles set for ornament only on the mantle piece—­and looked all round the brightly lighted little room.  “Aha!” she said to herself, wiping the cold sweat of her agony from her face.  “Candles to other people.  God’s light to me. Nothing to be seen! nothing to be seen!” Taking one of the candles in her hand, she crossed the passage, with her head down, turned her back on Geoffrey’s open door, closed it quickly and softly, stretching out her hand behind her, and retreated again to her own room.  She fastened the door, and took an ink-bottle and a pen from the mantle-piece.  After considering for a moment, she hung a handkerchief over the keyhole, and laid an old shawl longwise at the bottom of the door, so as to hide the light in her room from the observation of any one in the house who might wake and come that way.  This done, she opened the upper part of her dress, and, slipping her fingers into a secret pocket hidden in the inner side of her stays, produced from it some neatly folded leaves of thin paper.  Spread out on the table, the leaves revealed themselves—­all but the last—­as closely covered with writing, in her own hand.

The first leaf was headed by this inscription:  “My Confession.  To be put into my coffin, and to be buried with me when I die.”

She turned the manuscript over, so as to get at the last page.  The greater part of it was left blank.  A few lines of writing, at the top, bore the date of the day of the week and month on which Lady Lundie had dismissed her from her situation at Windygates.  The entry was expressed in these terms: 

“I have seen IT again to-day.  The first time for two months past.  In the kitchen-garden.  Standing behind the young gentleman whose name is Delamayn.  Resist the Devil, and he will flee from you.  I have resisted.  By prayer.  By meditation in solitude.  By reading good books.  I have left my place.  I have lost sight of the young gentleman for good.  Who will IT stand behind? and point to next?  Lord have mercy upon me!  Christ have mercy upon me!”

Under this she now added the following lines, first carefully prefixing the date: 

“I have seen IT again to-night.  I notice one awful change.  IT has appeared twice behind the same person.  This has never happened before.  This makes the temptation more terrible than ever.  To-night, in his bedroom, between the bed-head and the wall, I have seen IT behind young Mr. Delamayn again.  The head just above his face, and the finger pointing downward at his throat.  Twice behind this one man.  And never twice behind any other living creature till now.  If I see IT a third time behind him—­Lord deliver me!  Christ deliver me!  I daren’t think of it.  He shall leave my cottage to-morrow.  I would fain