ckly the whole story of Sir
John's escape, also the attempt to recapture him. Then came what his
Lordship expected;--a request for a fortune. Of course, while Cedric
thought the amounts asked would not be wholly a loss, yet he knew the
amounts allowed of a great margin of perquisites, and to whom these
perquisites would go, he could guess. However, without question or
complaint, he agreed to give what the Duke asked for; indeed the
matters were settled there and then.

"If Sir John's life is in danger, I know of no better place of safety
than here. He had better come with all haste--'twould be my wife's
desire!"

"Wife, so soon?" And the great Duke raised his eyebrows--a small
action, but with him it had a world of meaning in it. "I congratulate
thee, my lord, but--if her ladyship knew the danger that would beset
her father upon such a journey, I feel sure she would wait patiently
a time that must of necessity be of some length. I beg my lord not to
think of bringing Sir John hither. As I hinted before, if this matter
is brought out and he is proven guiltless of those little matters
hinted of, then he could meet her without this heaviness that so
weights him. I am sure if such a thought as meeting his daughter were
mentioned, he would heartily beg for its postponement and--especially
now that she is my Lady of Crandlemar." It stood Buckingham much in
hand to keep Sir John and Lord Cedric from meeting, for he had, not
only told truth, but had heartlessly impugned the former's character
to line his own pocket with the latter's wealth. The truth of the
matter was that he was tight caught in a network of financial and
political intrigue, and this was the only means to disentangle
himself.

After this first business was settled, a second affair was introduced
and the Duke spoke of his lordship's matters at Court. He said:

"The King is hard pressed by the nobles--or a portion of them. They
insisted that thou wert aiding the Catholics in such a manner that
the lives of Protestants in this vicinity were in danger. They even
whisper that a plot is being formulated to murder Monmouth. The King
felt it incumbent to send for thee, and as the courier was about
to start forth, he received word that the messenger he had sent in
pursuit of my Lady of Candlemar had been foully dealt with by no other
hand than thine. This stirred the King into a frenzy and straightway
he charged thee with treason and--one comes now to take thee to