, but
whom at times before his eyes at night he saw.... Immediately upon his
leaving Black Hill she had broken with Glenfernie. She was clear of
him--the laird could reproach her with nothing!

What had happened? He had told her how, at need, a letter might be
sent. But one had never come. He himself had never written. Writing
was set in a prickly ring of difficulties and dangers. What had
happened? Strong, secret inclination toward finding least painful
things for himself brought his conclusion. Sitting there in the
sunshine, his will deceiving him, he determined that it was simply
that Elspeth had at last told Glenfernie that she could not love him
because she loved another. Probably--persistence being markedly a
trait of Old Steadfast's--he had been after her once and again, and
she had turned upon him and said much more than in prudence she should
have said! So Alexander would have made his discovery and might, if he
pleased, image other trysts than his own in the glen! Certainly he had
done this, and then sat down and penned his challenge!

Elspeth! He was unshakably conscious that Glenfernie would tell none
what Elspeth might have been provoked into giving away. Old Steadfast,
there was no denying, had that knightliness. Three now knew--no more
than three. If, through some mischance, there had been wider
discovery, she would have written! The Black Hill letter, too, would
have had somewhat there to say.

Then, behind the challenge, stood old and new relations between Ian
Rullock and Alexander Jardine! It was what Glenfernie might choose to
term the betrayal of friendship--a deep scarification of Old
Steadfast's pride, a severing cut given to his too imperial
confidence, poison dropped into the wells of domination, "No!" said to
too much happiness, to any surpassing of him, Ian, in happiness, "No!"
to so much reigning!

Ian shook himself, thrust away the doubtful glimmer of a smile. That
way really did lie hell....

He came back to a larger if a much perplexed self. He could not meet
Glenfernie on that sea beach, fight him there. He did not desire to
kill Old Steadfast, though, as the world went, pleasure was to be had
in now and then giving superiority pain. Face to face upon those
sands, some blood shed and honor satisfied, Alexander would be
reasonable--being by nature reasonable! Ian shook himself.

"Now he draws me like a lodestone, and now I feel Lucifer to his
Michael! What old, past mountain of frie