ile myself to having done
it even yet," she said pathetically. "I do not know this Mr.
Barrington-Edwards but by sight, and it seems such a horrible
thing to rise up against a stranger like that. But I couldn't keep it
any longer; I felt that to do so would be equivalent to sharing his
guilt, and the thought that if I kept silent I might possibly be
paving the way to the sacrifice of other innocent lives almost drove
me out of my mind."

"I can quite understand your feelings, Miss Valmond," said Cleek,
touched to the very heart by the deep distress of her. "But may I say
I think you have done right? I never yet knew Heaven to be anything
but tender to those who do their duty, and you certainly have done
yours--to yourself, to your fellow creatures, and to God!"

Before she could make any response to this, footsteps sounded from
the outer passage, and a deep, rich, masculine voice said, "Rose,
Rose dear, I am ready now," and almost in the same moment a tall,
well-set-up man in priestly clothing crossed the threshold and
entered the room. He stopped short as he saw the others and made a
hasty apology.

"Oh, pardon me," he said. "I did not know that you had visitors,
dear, otherwise----Eh, what? Mr. Narkom, is it not?"

"Yes, Mr. Valmond," replied the superintendent, holding out a
welcoming hand. "It is I, and this is my friend and assistant, Mr.
George Headland. We have just been talking with your sister over
her trying experience."

"Terrible--terrible is the proper word, Mr. Narkom. Like you, I
never heard of it until to-day. It shocked me to the very soul,
you may believe. Delighted to meet you, Mr. Headland. A new disciple,
eh, Mr. Narkom? Another follower in the footsteps of the great
Cleek? By the way, I see you have lost touch with that amazing man. I
saw your advertisement in the paper the other day. Any clue to his
whereabouts as yet?"

"Not the slightest!"

"Ah, that's too bad. From what I have heard of him he would have
made short work of this present case had he been available. But
pray pardon me if I rush off, my time is very limited. Rose, dear, I
am going to visit Father Burns this evening and shall stop at the
orphanage on the way, so if you have the customary parcel for the
children----"

"It is upstairs, in my oratory, dear," she interposed. "Come with
me--if the gentlemen will excuse us for a moment--and I will get it
for you."

"May we not all go up, Miss Valmond?" interposed Cleek. "I sh