The tired French Canadians went quickly off to their beds in the fish-house loft . Benjamin stood by the skids until all was quiet , then he walked down the cove to a rocky point that jutted out into the water . He leaned against a huge boulder and laid his head on his arm , looking up into the dark sky . The stars shone calmly down on his misery ; the throbbing sea stretched out before him ; its low , murmuring moan seemed to be the inarticulate voice of his pain . The air was close and oppressive ; fitful flashes of heat lightning shimmered here and there over the heavy banks of cloud on the horizon ; little wavelets sobbed at the base of the rocks . When Benjamin lifted his head he saw Frank Braithwaite standing between him and the luminous water . He took a step forward , and they came face to face as Braithwaite turned with a start . Benjamin clenched his hands and fought down a hideous temptation to thrust his rival off the rock . `` I saw you today , '' he said in a low , intense tone . `` What do you think of yourself , coming down here to steal the girl I loved from me ? Were n't there enough girls where you came from to choose among ? I hate you . I 'd kill you -- '' `` Selby , stop ! You do n't know what you are saying . If I have wronged you , I swear I did it unintentionally . I loved Stella from the first -- who could help it ? But I thought she was virtually bound to you , and I did not try to win her away . You do n't know what it cost me to remain passive . I know that you have always distrusted me , but hitherto you have had no reason to . But today I found that she was free -- that she did not care for you !
And I found -- or thought I found -- that there was a chance XXXXX me .
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