itation, the madman, who had been
watching through half-closed eyes, sprang upon him without a sound of
warning and clutched his throat with a vise-like grip.

Not even the utmost exertion of Peveril's splendid strength served to
loose that horrid hold. In silence he fought for his life, until he
grew black in the face and his eyes started from their sockets. His
head seemed on the point of bursting. He reeled, staggered, and then,
together with his terrible assailant, fell heavily to the floor. As
they did so, the old man's head struck on a sharp corner; he uttered a
moan, and at last the deadly clutch on Peveril's throat was relaxed.

With his next moment of consciousness Peveril was sitting on the floor
gasping for breath, and Ralph Darrell lay motionless beside him in a
pool of blood. Then came quick steps on the stair, and Mary Darrell,
accompanied by Major Arkell and the doctor from Red Jacket, entered
the room.

For an instant the girl stared horror-stricken at the scene before
her. Then she darted forward and clasped her father's body in her
arms, crying out as she did so:

"You have killed him, Richard Peveril!--killed an old man, sick and
helpless; robbed him of his all, and then murdered him! Oh,
papa!--dear, dear papa! Why did I leave you for a single minute?"

"My! How she hates poor Mr. Peril!" whispered Nelly Trefethen, who had
come to act as nurse, and who, guided by Mike Connell, reached the
doorway in time to witness the tableau, as well as to hear Mary
Darrell's cruel words.

CHAPTER XXVIII

LEFT IN SOLE POSSESSION

Although Ralph Darrell was to all appearance dead, the doctor
pronounced him to be still alive, and caused him to be lifted back to
the bed, where he dressed his wound, at the same time administering
restoratives. While this was being done, Major Arkell, taking charge
of Peveril, led him to another room, in which his things, brought from
the Trefethen house, had been placed. The young man was still
trembling from his recent awful experience.

"In another minute all would have been over with me," he said, in
describing the incident to his friend. "For I could no more loosen his
clutch than if it had been a band of steel."

"That fall was a mighty lucky thing, then," commented the other.

"Yes, I suppose it was, for apparently nothing else could have saved
me. At the same time, think how unpleasant it would have been for me
if it had killed him, and I had been charged w