object of her love was a white man. Gus
Martin saw him kiss her and killed him, killed the Rev. Percy G.
Marshall. The letter which gave me so much trouble told me all, told me
all! O my God! She loved another."

Mrs. Ellwood sat and looked at Ensal utterly dazed. She arose and,
thoroughly weakened physically by the shock of Ensal's information,
crept out of the room to Tiara.

"Darling," she gasped, "he says that you loved another--a white man--a
preacher--Percy Marshall. Daughter, darling, deny it! Deny it!"

"O! God of Heaven, what shall I do! What shall I do," groaned the
unhappy Tiara.

With one hand pressed upon her throbbing heart and the other laid upon
her fevered brow the beautiful girl left the Ellwood home.

CHAPTER XXX.

_Mr. A. Hostility._

It will be recalled that in a very early chapter we saw a cadaverous
looking white man, wearing a much worn suit of clothes, making a sketch
of Ensal's home, as the latter was going out to make arrangements with
Mrs. Crawford for the introduction of Tiara into the best circles of
Negro life in Almaville.

And now in the crisis of the relations of Ensal and Tiara he comes
forward to inject his peculiar virus into the awful wound made in
Ensal's heart by the disclosures of the Gus Martin letter. Tiara,
burdened creature, was hardly out of sight of Ensal's home when this man
made his appearance and was ushered into the study. When he had taken
the seat proffered him, he said:

"Gus Martin wrote me a letter, enclosing a copy of a letter which he had
sent to you."

"O heaven, be merciful. Let it not come to that!" said the agonizing
Ensal, shocked that Gus had let another know of the matter that had so
disturbed him.

"Your prayer is not directed to me, but I hear, understand, and will
answer it. You do not wish the public to know of the contents of your
letter. You would shield the good name of the girl. As I shall very
shortly trust you with one of the gravest of secrets you will have a
hostage which will of itself insure silence on my part. You and I, I am
sure are the only two persons to whom Gus communicated the affair and
between us we can take care of the secret."

Ensal stepped across the room and clasped the man's hand fervently and
the two regarded themselves as mutually pledged to secrecy concerning
that matter and whatever was now about to be canvassed.

"It is not necessary for you to know my name, nationality or anything
that pertains