Say that you are yet true to yourself; that you have not forgotten
those solemn vows you made in the home of your father; say that you are
not the tool of the vile Maxwell--say it before you speak your business
with me!"

"Miss Dumont, I acknowledge that the present appearance is against me;
but I assure you I have come only as the minister of good to you."

"Bless you for the words! I feared you had again been tempted."

"So I have, lady, and apparently have yielded; but it was only to save
you. Listen to me, and I will disclose all the details of the plots
which are even now ripening to ensnare you,"--and Vernon, in a low tone,
briefly narrated everything, and the means which were in operation to
secure her safety.

"You must go to Bellevue to-morrow, there to meet my father and Captain
Carroll," said he.

The color came to her pale cheek, at the mention of her lover's name.
She felt that Vernon meant to be true to her, and true to himself. And
it required no persuasion to induce her to acquiesce in the
arrangements.

"But, Hatchie--must I leave him in prison? It is not a meet reward for
his fidelity."

"It cannot be avoided, Miss Dumont. I will see him to-day, and when his
honest heart knows that you are in safety, he will be just as happy in a
prison as in a palace. He shall be set at liberty in a few days."

"I hope he may. Does this De Guy accompany you?"

"No; but Maxwell says he will reach Bellevue as soon as we do."

"Why is this? Why does not Maxwell present himself, and urge his
infamous proposals?"

"I know not, unless it be that De Guy is the more artful of the two."

* * * * *

Let us change the scene to the next day, at the abode of Mr. Faxon.

Dalhousie and his wife, by the kind attentions of their host, were
restored to a comparatively healthy state. The lady had suffered much in
her physical and mental constitution, and a shade of deep melancholy
rested upon her handsome features. She could not forget the horrors of
the dungeon in which she had been confined. It seemed a great epoch in
her life; all before it was strange and undefined, while every trivial
incident since was a great paragraph in her history.

Mr. Faxon was seated in his library, surrounded by his guests. The
affairs of the Dumont family had again been discussed, for to them they
were full of interest.

The good minister feelingly expatiated upon the bitterness of the
heiress' lot, broug