to her; she composed
herself, and was reconciled to her fate.

She descried, amid the numerous reliefs of mythological subjects near
her, a representation of the death of Christ on the right of the
entrance. The sight strengthened her mind; she threw herself upon her
knees before the marble cross, clasped it with both ands, and prayed
quietly with closed eyes, while the water rose and rose; it already
splashed upon the steps of the gallery.

"You pray, murderess? Away from the cross!" cried Gothelindis, enraged;
"think of the three dukes!"

Suddenly all the dolphin and triton heads on the right side of the
octagon began to spout streams of hot rater; white steam rushed out of
the pipes.

Amalaswintha sprang up and ran to the left side of the gallery.

"Gothelindis, I forgive you! Kill me, but forgive me also!"

And the water rose and rose; it already covered the topmost step of the
bath, and slowly wetted the floor of the gallery.

And now the streaming water-pipes spouted upon Amalaswintha from the
left also. She took refuge in the middle of the gallery, directly
opposite the Medusa, the only place where no steam from the hot-water
pipe could reach her.

If she mounted the spring-board, which was placed here, she could
respite her life for some time longer. Gothelindis seemed to expect
that she would do so, and to revel in the prospect of the lengthened
torture of the agonised woman.

The water already rushed over the marble flooring of the gallery and
laved the feet of Amalaswintha. She ran quickly up the brown and
shining wooden steps, and leaned over the railing of the bridge.

"Hear me, Gothelindis! my last prayer! not for myself, but for my
people, for _our_ people. Petros will destroy them, and Theodahad----"

"Yes, I know that the kingdom is your last anxiety! Despair. It is
lost! These foolish Goths, who have always preferred the Amelungs to
the Balthes, are sold and betrayed by the Amelungs. Belisarius
approaches, and there is no one to warn them."

"You err, satanic woman; they _are_ warned! I, their Queen, have warned
them! Hail to my people! Destruction to their enemies! and may God have
mercy on my soul!" and she suddenly leapt from the spring-board into
the water, which closed whirling over her head.

Gothelindis looked at the place which her victim had occupied a moment
before.

"She has disappeared," she said. Then she looked at the water--on the
surface floated Amalaswintha's kerchie