from my
room. Mary Grey is sharing my bed with me to-night--to-morrow I shall
arrange for her to have my father's room. I'll get the papers at once if
you will wait."

The papers were found with some little delay, and Beatrice was preparing
to come downstairs again when it seemed to her that she heard a noise in
the room next to her, the bedroom that had been occupied by Sir
Charles. It was a creeping kind of noise followed by what was most
unmistakably a sneeze.

Beatrice hesitated just for a moment, for her nerves had been much
strained lately. Then she put her fear from her and walked into the next
room. Only one of the electric lights gave a feeble glimmer over the
room. A man stood there, a man who was changing his upper garments.
Beatrice gave a little cry and staggered back into the doorway. The man
turned at the same time, and saw that he was observed. His face was as
white as that of Beatrice.

"Father!" the girl said, "father! Is it possible that I am not dreaming
and that you are in the flesh before me again? Oh, father, father!"

CHAPTER XXXIX

A deadly faintness came over Beatrice. Torn and distracted as she had
been of late, this last discovery was almost too much for her. She could
only stand there with her hand upon her heart to still its passionate
beating.

Yes, it was her father, beyond the shadow of a doubt. How he got there
Beatrice could not possibly have told. He was looking much the same as
when Beatrice had seen him last, save that his clothes were not so neat
and he had not been shaved for some days. He seemed quite resigned to
the situation although his expression was cross and irritable. He
motioned to Beatrice to shut the door.

"Why don't you close the door?" he demanded. "Suppose anybody saw me?"

Beatrice was getting back some of her self-possession by this time. She
closed the door and then took her seat on the edge of her father's bed.

"Why should you not be seen?" she asked. "What difference can it
possibly make? We have all been looking for you everywhere. Where have
you been?"

"I'm not quite sure," was the strange reply. "But you seem to have lost
sight of my peculiar situation, Beatrice. My head is a little strange
and confused, but I dare say it will come right presently. What happened
to me on the night of the dinner party?"

"I did not see that anything happened," Beatrice said. "I suppose you
went to bed in the ordinary way. I did not see that there was