hat scampered in droves across the damp floor of the
cellar in which he was a prisoner.

He felt that his brain must soon give way, and that Jasper Wilde would
have his desire--he would soon be driven to insanity.

He thought of Bernardine, who was waiting for him to return to her, and
he groaned aloud in the bitterness of his anguish, in the agony of his
awful despair.

The manacles cut into his flesh, for his wrists had swollen as he lay
there, and the burning thirst was becoming maddening.

"Great God in Heaven! how long--ah, how long, will this torture last?"
he cried.

In the midst of his anguish, he heard footsteps; but not those for which
he longed so ardently. A moment later, and Jasper Wilde stood before
him.

"Now let me tell you what my revenge upon the beautiful Bernardine will
be for preferring _you_ to myself. I shall marry her--she dare not
refuse when I have her here--that I warrant you. As I said before, I
shall marry the dainty Bernardine, the cold, beautiful, haughty
Bernardine, and then I shall force her to go behind the bar, and the
beauty of her face will draw custom from far and near.

"Nothing could be so revolting to her as this. It will crush her, it
will kill her, and I, whose love for her has turned into hate--yes,
deepest, deadly hate--will stand by and watch her, and laugh at her. Ha!
ha! ha!"

With a fury born of madness, Doctor Gardiner wrenched himself free from
the chains that bound him, and with one flying leap was upon his enemy
and had hurled him to the floor, his hand clutching Wilde's throat.

"It shall be death to one or other of us!" he panted, hoarsely.

But he had not reckoned that in his weak condition he was no match for
Jasper Wilde, who for the moment was taken aback by the suddenness of
the attack.

* * * * *

That the encounter would have ended in certain death to Jay Gardiner, in
his exhausted state, was quite apparent to Jasper Wilde; but in that
moment fate intervened to save him. Hardly had the two men come together
in that desperate death-struggle, ere the startling cry of "Fire!" rang
through the building.

Jasper Wilde realized what that meant. There was but one exit from the
cellar, and if he did not get out of it in a moment's time, he would be
caught like a rat in a trap. Gathering himself together, he wrenched
himself free from the doctor's grasp, and hurling him to the floor with
a fearful blow planted directly b