By Edgar Allan Poe
ReadOasis Step 2
(Part 3)

Illustration by Harry Clarke

He cried once, and only once. I forced him to the floor, and pulled the heavy bed over him. I smiled as I thought that he was nearly dead.

But for many minutes, the heart beat on with a quiet sound. This did not concern me. It was not loud enough to be heard. After some time it stopped. The old man was dead. I removed the bed and examined the body....