"

His voice grew hoarse with excitement, as he added, low and cautiously:

"What do you know about Ralph Bastin?"

She glanced frightenedly around, then with her finger raised, she
whispered:

"The very air seems full of spies here, as it was at Babylon."

She leant towards him until her lips almost touched his ear, and
whispered:

"Lucien Apleon, The Emperor, has decreed that Ralph Bastin is to be
slain!"

"Tell me more, Rose, trust me absolutely, dear child!" His voice was
very hoarse as he spoke.

"How do you know this?" he added. "But perhaps you had better tell me
who and what you are, dear child!"

He leant to her that his voice might be a whisper only, for he realized
her warning of a moment ago. "Do not fear, dear child, I shall hold as
sacred as my faith in God, anything that you tell me!"

She laid her pretty little plump hand in his, and looked at him
confidingly out of her great Eastern liquid eyes, as with a beaming
smile, she said:

"I could not be afraid of you, good George, you saved my life, and----"

She sighed, and there was a sound of supreme content this time in the
sigh. "No," she went on, "I could not be afraid of you, my saviour
from death. And I can, I will, confide in you, for I sorely need a
friend, and I feel, I know I can trust you. I had been asking God,
yesterday, to help me, to guide me to a friend, and I feel that He has
sent you into my life at this point when I, a lone girl, need most a
friend. Someday I may be able to tell you all the story of my life.
It will be enough here, however, to tell you that, for two months, I
have been in Babylon, with my brother--my only living relative, as far
as I know. Babylon----"

She shuddered as she repeated the name, and her face flushed scarlet,
then paled as swiftly, while a look of horror leaped into her eyes, and
she gazed fearfully round as though she feared some terror of the foul
and mighty city might even here have pursued her.

"No tongue dare, no tongue _can_ tell a thousandth part of the
abominations of that sink of iniquity. I came here with my brother
three days ago, and he has joined hands with "The People of the Mark."
He is clever, very clever! They know that, and because he will be
useful to them, he has been placed in high office among them, and----"

She paused abruptly, and with another frightened glance around,
whispered:

"Do you know what 'the mark' is, and what it means?"

"Is it what has be