ssie Bain.

As he boarded the evening boat for Clayton there was not a more
miserable man in all the whole wide world than Hubert Varrick. He paced
the deck moodily. The thousands of little green islands upon which the
search-light flashed so continuously, had little charm for him. Suddenly
as the light turned its full glare upon a small island midway up the
stream, rendering each object upon it as clearly visible as though it
were noonday, under the strong light Hubert Varrick's eyes fell upon a
sight that fairly rooted him to the spot with horror.

In that instantaneous glance this is what he saw: A young and lovely
girl crouching on her knees, in the long deep grass under the trees, her
arms outstretched in wild supplication, and bending over her was the
dark figure of a man. One hand clutched her white throat, and the other
hand held a revolver pressed to her white brow. The slouch hat he wore
concealed his features. The girl's face, framed in that mass of curling
dark hair, the white arms--great God! how strangely like Gerelda's!

Was he going mad? He strained his eyes to see, and a terrible cry of
agony broke from his lips.

"Captain!" he shrieked, "somebody, anybody, get me a life-boat, quick,
for the love of Heaven! Half my fortune for a life-boat--quick!"

As he cried aloud, the island was buried in darkness again.

CHAPTER IV.

"THE GIRL WHO PLAYS AT FLIRTATION MAY FIND SHE HAS GRASPED A TWO-EDGED
SWORD," SAID THE HANDSOME YOUNG CAPTAIN, LOOKING FULL IN GERELDA'S
BEWITCHING, HAUGHTY FACE.

The captain who was passing, stopped short and looked at Hubert Varrick
in amazement as he cried out, wildly:

"Get me a life-boat, somebody--anybody! Half my fortune for a
life-boat!"

"What is the matter?" asked the captain, sharply. "Has some one fallen
overboard?"

When Varrick answered in the affirmative, the captain gave orders that a
life-boat be at once lowered by the crew, calling upon Varrick to point
out, as near as he could, where the drowning man was.

"I will go, too," Varrick answered, springing into the boat; and an
instant later the boat was flying over the waves in the direction which
Varrick indicated.

"Which way, sir?" asked the man at the oars.

"Straight toward that little island yonder," was the hoarse reply. "Make
for it quickly! Here, take this bank-note, and, in Heaven's name, row
sharp! No one is drowning, but there is a young and lovely girl at the
mercy of some fiend on