atrice to go to Wandsworth.
For the girl had a difficult and dangerous task before her. Rightly or
wrongly, it seemed to her that her place was by the side of the brother
who had treated her so badly. Many a good woman before had sacrificed
herself to a scoundrel, and many a good woman will do so again. Mary had
always clung to the idea that Sartoris might be brought back to the fold
again. She knew pretty well how far he had fallen, but she did not quite
understand the deep depravity of the man's nature. After all, he was an
object to be pitied; after all, he had been the victim of a woman's
cruelty, or so Mary thought. But Mary did not know everything; had she
done so she would have been forced to leave her brother to his own
devices.

She came at length to the _Royal Palace Hotel_, and asked for Beatrice.
The latter was in her room, she was told, and Mary went up. But Beatrice
was not there, her place for the time being occupied by Adeline, the
maid.

"My mistress is out," the maid explained; "but if you will leave any
message I can deliver it. She will not be very long, in any case."

Mary hesitated. She had many things to do and no time to waste. It was
not altogether imperative that she should see Beatrice just at the
moment. She turned the matter over in her mind before she replied to
Adeline's suggestion.

"I rather wanted to see your mistress," she said. "Perhaps I may make it
convenient to return in about half an hour or so. Meanwhile, will you
please give her this letter. Will you be very careful to say that Mrs.
Richford is to do nothing till she has seen me? I mean that she is not
to take any steps in the matter of the letter till I come back. Will you
be especially careful about that?"

Adeline promised, in a vague kind of way. She did not express the usual
curiosity of her class; her mind seemed to be elsewhere. She showed Mary
out with an alacrity that would have aroused her suspicions had she had
less to occupy her mind. But Adeline had affairs of her own to think of.
There was a very striking-looking valet on the same floor who had shown
himself not insensible to the girl's attractions. Adeline laid the note
on the table and promptly forgot all about it.

In the full assurance that no harm was possible for the present, Mary
went her way. It was getting late in the evening now, and the hotel was
full of people; a strange excitement seemed to be in the air; outside,
the newsboys were particularly