An Adventure at Brownville AUDIOBOOK Short Story by Ambrose Bierce Learn English Through Story

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an adventure at brownville

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there was only one school in brownville

and i was the only teacher

brownville was a small town and had few

young people

but many visitors stayed there in the

summer

brownville has some of the finest views

in the state of california

the town lies between hills that are

covered in beautiful colorful trees

in the hills the air is fresh and clear

many visitors came to brownville to

improve their health

they walked on the hills and breathed

the good clean air

i saw many of these visitors because i

lived in a boarding house

in summer the house was full of guests

and i talked to most of them

i ate breakfast and supper in the

boarding house

and spent the rest of the day at the

school

the school was not far away

it was on the other side of a hill

the distance by road was about one and a

half miles

but i knew a shorter way

i could walk over the top of the hill in

15 minutes

there was a path that ran through the

forest on the hill

i came back along this forest path late

one evening

it was the last day of term

tomorrow the students vacations would

begin

i had stayed late at the school because

i had been writing reports about the

students

the sun was going down in the sky

its golden light shone through the trees

and made long dark shadows

i was tired

i sat down on an old fallen tree

and looked at the sun setting in the

darkening sky

it was calm and peaceful in the forest

suddenly i heard voices

one was a woman’s voice

and she sounded angry

the second voice belonged to a man

it was a deep and musical voice

the voice of a singer

i could not see who was speaking

but i could hear the words clearly

don’t threaten me

the man said

you can do nothing

don’t try to change anything

or you’ll both suffer

what do you mean

said the woman’s voice angrily

it was a cultivated voice

she spoke clearly and well

do you mean that you’ll murder us

the man did not reply

i wanted to get to the boarding house

it was supper time

and i was hungry but i did not want to

pass the man and woman

i looked around and saw no one

i stood up quickly and walked on

it was almost dark now

but suddenly i saw the two people among

the trees

they were standing on the path

the man was tall and slim

he seemed to be wearing black clothes

but there were too many shadows

and i could not see clearly

the woman wore a pale gray dress

they did not see me

as i watched the woman knelt on the

ground in front of the man

she held her hands together in front of

her face

was she begging for the man’s help or

was she praying that he would not hurt

her

i did not like this scene

there was trouble here

i stepped behind a large

tree when i looked at the path again

the man and woman had disappeared

i walked on until i saw the light of the

lamps shining from the windows of the

boarding house

the scene of the man and the woman in

the forest

stayed in my mind

it had made me feel unhappy and

uncomfortable

i saw some new guests at breakfast the

next morning

a young woman sat at a table opposite

mine

but she was not the woman who i had seen

last night

then a younger lady entered the dining

room

the two young women looked very similar

and they were both extremely pretty

when the second young lady spoke

i recognized her voice

immediately i had heard it in the forest

the two ladies were sisters

i guessed that they were about 18 and 20

years old

i finished my coffee and left the dining

room quickly

we were the only people in the room

and i did not want to listen to their

private conversation

that would be rude

and i did not want them to notice me

i did not see the tall slim man

but i heard him

he was in the garden of the boarding

house

as i had guessed

he was a singer

he was practicing his singing

he was singing la donna a mobile

a song from verdi’s opera rigoletto

the singer had a very good strong voice

maybe it was too good

why was he in a simple boarding house in

brownville and singing in this way

this was strange did he want the guests

to admire his voice

i walked away quickly

when i returned to the boarding house

later

i saw the elder sister

she was standing in the garden with the

singer

he was dressed in black clothes

his back was turned toward me

so i could not see his face

brownville was a small town

and it had no theaters or restaurants

so when the people of brownville

finished their work

they enjoyed gossiping

i enjoyed gossiping too

who were these unusual visitors

and what was their story

the singer was talking easily to the

younger woman

i guessed that they knew each other well

when i came into the garden he stopped

talking and turned around

he looked straight at my face

the man was not young

i guessed that he was about 50 years old

his face was extremely handsome

his hair was thick and black

as black as the clothes that he wore

and the clothes were very fine

they were smart fashionable and well

made

they looked expensive

he could not have bought clothes like

these in brownville

i had seen pictures of opera houses in

the fashionable cities of europe

this man reminded me of the men in those

pictures

the man looked at me as if he knew the

thoughts in my head

did he know what i was thinking

the expression on his face was not angry

or frightening

but i suddenly felt afraid

why

i could not explain it

i only knew that i was afraid of this

dark and handsome man

he was dangerous

i did not like him

he put his hand on the young woman’s arm

and turned her away

then they stepped inside the boarding

house and disappeared

neither of them spoke to me

the landlady of the boarding house

always liked to gossip

she always had the latest news

and was happy to talk about it

so i asked her about the new guests

the two girls are pauline and eva

maynard

and they’ve come from san francisco

the landlady said

pauline is the older sister

the man’s name is richard benning

he is their guardian

he has taken care of the girls since

their father died

soon when the girls are 21

they’ll have their father’s money

meanwhile eva isn’t well

mr benning believes that the good heir

of brownville will improve her health

mr benning takes very good care of the

two girls

the landlady went on

he spends a lot of money on them

and on himself

but maybe he’s spending their father’s

money

it was now my summer vacation

i did not have to go back to the school

for several weeks

i walked on the hills

and enjoyed the views and the fresh air

i often met richard benning and the two

girls walking on the hills too

they seemed to be very happy together

then i remembered the strange words that

i had heard one of the sisters

say do you mean that you’ll murder us

why

had eva maynard said this

for a short time i forgot those

frightening words

then one morning

the people of brownville were all

talking about a tragedy

something terrible had happened in their

town

pauline maynard the elder sister

had died

many people came to the boarding house

to say a few kind words

i went into the sitting room

eva maynard was standing beside the body

of her dead sister

and she was weeping

pauline maynard was lying in a wooden

coffin

her face was extremely pale

she looked as if you were asleep

a crowd of people stood in the doorway

of the sitting room

and stared at the scene

suddenly richard benning pushed his way

through the crowd and entered the room

he tried to hold eva’s hand

but she pulled it away

she stood up and cried out

it’s you

she shouted

you’ve done this you you you

she doesn’t know what she’s saying

richard benning said in a soft voice

she’s had a terrible shock

she’s upset

benning moved toward eva

but she stepped away from him

he did not try to touch her hand again

instead

he moved his hand in front of her face

slowly

once

immediately eva’s eyes closed

and she stood still

then

benning held her hand and put his other

arm around her shoulders

suddenly she began to weep again

then benning gently led the young woman

out of the room

a few days later there was an inquest in

brownville

the coroner listened to the words of

benning

a doctor and several people in the

boarding house

then he wrote these words on pauline’s

death certificate

cause of death

heart disease

they thought that pauline had died

suddenly because her heart was weak

benning sent for an undertaker from san

francisco

the undertaker took pauline’s body back

to the city

and she was buried

neither benning nor eva went to the dead

girl’s funeral

many of the people of brownville thought

that this was wrong and strange

poor eva

the landlady said to me

her health is not good mr benning is

worried

he doesn’t want to take her back to san

francisco

her health might become worse if she

goes to the city

it’s better for her to stay here in

brownville

a week passed

one evening i finished my supper and

went into the garden

i saw richard benning and eva maynard

standing beneath a tree

they were holding each other’s hands

and looking into each other’s eyes

it was a very gentle and romantic scene

but it was wrong

they looked like lovers

benning was a 50 year old man

and eva was not yet 20.

also he was her guardian

benning should be like a father to the

young woman

not a lover

i stood in the shadows and they did not

see me

i did not move

but i listened

you will kill me

said eva

i know that you killed pauline

i beg you to kill me quickly

let me go

let me be at peace

richard benning did not reply

he released eva’s hand and walked away

he walked up the hill to the forest

where i had first seen him

as he walked he sang

his fine voice sounded beautiful and

wild

eva stared at her guardian

as she listened she put her hands

together

she held her hands in front of her body

as if she was praying

i walked out of the shadows

eva turned and stared at me

maybe i had frightened her

miss maynard i said

i’m sorry

i came into the garden and i heard what

you said

i believe that you’re in danger

you can do nothing she said

her voice was soft and she had a strange

expression on her face

her eyes were large and bright

was she ill

or maybe she was dreaming

i gently held eva’s hand

you seem to be asleep i said

you must wake up

you said that benning killed your sister

you said that he’ll kill you too

will you tell me about it

i’ll try to help you

you can’t help me

said eva

we’ll be here for only a day or two more

then we’ll go away

far away

i ask you to be silent

you mustn’t talk about anything that

you’ve seen or heard here

but this is crazy i said

i’m sure that you’re in danger i must

tell the police

eva woke up a little when she heard this

her expression changed

she became cold and polite

this is my business not yours she said

but your sister died here

in brownville i said

and she died suddenly

now you are in danger

the people of brownville might be in

danger too

you must tell me what happened

didn’t you love your sister

yes i loved her said eva

but i love him more

do you think that the police will

believe you

you heard a secret conversation

if you talk about it i’ll say that your

words are lies

no one will believe your story

suddenly she smiled

it was a beautiful sweet smile

i could not believe her words

they were so hard and cold

eva held my hand tightly

come with me

she said

we’ll walk together

he will be away all night

he won’t know that you’ve been with me

we’ll walk and talk

and you’ll forget what you’ve seen and

heard

you’ll forget about us

truly i did not know the ways of women

then

i was happy to walk in the garden with

eva maynard

i was a little in love with this

beautiful young woman

we talked about the people of brownville

and we talked about their love of gossip

i did not want to go to my bed

before i said good night

i asked eva to walk with me the next day

there’s an old mill on the top of the

hill

will you walk there with me tomorrow

afternoon

we can enjoy the fine views from the

mill

if he’s not here yes

i’ll walk there with you

said eva

i went to bed feeling happy

i smiled happily as i fell asleep

the next morning i awoke feeling even

happier

today is going to be a special day i

thought

eva was not in the dining room at lunch

time

maybe i had hoped for too much

i am only a school teacher in a small

town and i am not very rich or very

handsome

but i was not disappointed

eva came into the garden

benning must have gone away

i was the happiest man in the world

eva said nothing as i followed her up

the path to the old mill

she knew the way there because she had

walked to the mill many times with her

guardian

eva and i did not have a conversation

but she sang songs

she sang happy and sad songs

her feelings changed as quickly as

clouds pass across the sky

one minute sunshine

the next minute shadow

i was happy to be with her whatever she

felt

she walked and i followed

when we came to the mill

she did not stop walking

she crossed an old wooden bridge and

took the path up the high hill

it was the path to a place called the

eagle’s nest

this was where the path ended

on a cliff high above the forest

the view from the eagle’s nest was

beautiful

i was a little afraid

the view was fine

but i did not like to go near the edge

of the cliff

the ground was more than 200 feet below

us

but eva stood on the cliff’s edge

and looked up

not down

suddenly i heard footsteps

and richard benning came and stood

beside us

i saw you walking on the path he said

carelessly

so i came up too

eva turned toward us

she still stood on the edge of the cliff

her eyes were shining

and she was smiling

there was a look of love on her face

i’m so glad that you came

she said

she was staring at benning

her loving expression showed that she

was telling the truth

but then

i saw something else in her expression

eva’s mouth was smiling

but suddenly there was fear in her eyes

she looked like a frightened animal

with a smile on her lips and fear in her

eyes eva stepped backward

she fell over the edge of the cliff to

the ground below

benning and i ran down the path to the

bottom of the

cliff he got there before me

i did not want to look at eva’s body

beautiful eva was no longer beautiful

benning looked at her carefully

but he did not touch her

she’s dead

quite dead he said

i’ll go to the town and get a police

officer

please stay here with the body

i did not know what to say

i was shocked

benning started to walk toward

brownville

then he turned and looked at me

you saw what happened he said carelessly

it was an accident

eva killed herself

i saw her step off the edge of the cliff

and you saw it too

you’re a killer i said

you’re a damned killer

you didn’t touch her but i know that you

killed her

benning turned his back toward me and

walked away

as he walked through the forest i heard

him singing

he was singing a song from verdi’s opera

rigoletto

la donna

emobile

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