Dorian Gray stayed inside the house the next day. He felt a very strong fear of death. He felt hunted (like an animal that a person wants to catch). He shook when the wind moved the curtains. He thought he saw the face of the sailor at the window again.
Perhaps the face was only in his imagination (the part of the mind that makes pictures of things that are not real). In the real world, the strong people usually win and the weak people lose. Dorian Gray told himself that James Vane was not there. The servants did not see any strangers near the house. James Vane probably went away on a ship.
Dorian Gray thought his young face was a mask. This mask saved him from James Vane. But Dorian Gray still felt a lot of guilt (a bad feeling because you did something wrong). He remembered how he killed Basil Hallward. This memory made him very afraid. When Lord Henry Wotton came to see him, Dorian Gray was crying.
On the third day, Dorian Gray finally went outside. The winter air was fresh and smelled like pine trees. He felt better and he wanted to enjoy life again. He decided his fears were not real. He felt silly for being so afraid.
After breakfast, Dorian Gray walked in the garden with the Duchess of Monmouth. Then he drove a carriage to meet a shooting party (a group of people who go out to kill birds or animals with guns). The sky was blue and the grass was white with frost. There was a thin layer of ice on the lake.
Dorian Gray saw Sir Geoffrey Clouston near a wood. Sir Geoffrey Clouston was the brother of the Duchess of Monmouth. Dorian Gray walked with him. Dorian Gray liked the sounds of the forest and the noise of the guns. He felt free and happy.
Suddenly, a hare (a large animal like a rabbit) jumped out of the grass. The animal was very fast. Sir Geoffrey Clouston raised his gun. Dorian Gray liked the beauty of the animal. "Do not shoot it, Geoffrey!" Dorian Gray cried. "Let it live."
Sir Geoffrey Clouston laughed and fired his gun. They heard two screams. One scream was from the animal in pain. The other scream was from a man. "I hit a beater (a person who makes noise to move animals toward the guns)!" Sir Geoffrey Clouston cried.
The men ran into the trees. They pulled a dead body out of the bushes. Dorian Gray looked away in horror. He felt that bad luck followed him everywhere. The man was dead. Many people came to look at the body.
Lord Henry Wotton put a hand on Dorian Gray’s shoulder. Lord Henry Wotton said they must stop shooting for the day. Dorian Gray said he wanted to stop forever. He felt the accident was a bad omen (a sign that something bad will happen). He felt that something terrible was coming for him.
Lord Henry Wotton laughed at Dorian Gray. Lord Henry Wotton said there are no such things as omens. He said Dorian Gray had a perfect life and everything he wanted. Dorian Gray said he would change places with anyone. He was terrified of death.
Dorian Gray saw a man moving behind the trees. He pointed at the man with a shaking hand. Lord Henry Wotton smiled and said it was only the gardener. The gardener gave Dorian Gray a letter from the Duchess of Monmouth. Dorian Gray put the letter in his pocket.
Dorian Gray told Lord Henry Wotton that he wanted to escape. He wanted to go away on his yacht (a large, expensive boat). He felt like his own life was a burden. He felt safe on a boat. Lord Henry Wotton asked if Dorian Gray was in trouble, but Dorian Gray did not answer.
The Duchess of Monmouth arrived and talked to them. She said Sir Geoffrey Clouston was very upset. She asked why Dorian Gray wanted to save the animal. Dorian Gray said it was just a whim. Then Dorian Gray felt sick again. He went to his room to lie down.
Dorian Gray decided to leave Selby Royal. He did not want to sleep there another night. He thought the place was full of death. He told his valet (a man’s personal servant) to pack his bags for London. He wrote a note to Lord Henry Wotton.
A man came to the door. It was the head-keeper of the woods. Dorian Gray took out his money. He wanted to give money to the family of the dead man. The keeper said they did not know the man. The man was not a local worker.
"He looks like a sailor, sir," the keeper said. Dorian Gray dropped his pen. His heart beat very fast. The keeper said the man was tattooed (having pictures drawn on the skin with ink). The man also had a gun in his pocket.
Dorian Gray stood up quickly. He felt a sudden hope. He asked where the body was. The keeper said the body was in a stable (a building where horses live) at the Home Farm. Dorian Gray went to the stables and got his horse.
Dorian Gray rode his horse very fast down the road. He reached the farm and went into the building. A candle was burning near the body. A piece of cloth covered the man’s face. Dorian Gray was shaking.
Dorian Gray asked a farm worker to take the cloth off the face. Dorian Gray looked at the man. He cried out with joy. The man who died in the woods was James Vane. Dorian Gray was finally safe.