way to where she stood.

"How do you like our methods now, prisoner?" was the satirical question.
"You are going to leave us _at once_, are you? Why don't you go? 'You
will kindly unlock the front door,' etc. Oh, my! Naturally we would be
keen on doing so after the pains we took to secure your distinguished
attendance here tonight. How very sweet you look behind a veil. Too bad
you don't wear one all the time. You would----"

"May it please your highness," interrupted a domino in hollow tones,
"the time is going. I would advise that we leave here at once with the
prisoner. A ride in the still night air may cool her fevered brain so
that when we return with her she will be in a more reasonable mood."

"I am also of that opinion," agreed a second. Several other voices rose
in approval of the plan.

The Scarlet Mask turned on them in a hurry. Not only angry at being
interrupted in her harassing of the prisoner, she did not propose to
take any dictation from her companions.

"Who is running this affair?" she asked in the familiar tones of Leslie
Cairns, minus her drawl. "This little, puffed-up hypocrite is not going
to leave here until she promises to mind her own business hereafter.
She is also going to promise not to tell where she has been tonight. She
may think she won't, but she will, or spend the rest of the night alone
here."

A murmur of dissenting voices at once ascended. Half a dozen dominoes
tried to force an opinion upon the Scarlet Mask at once. Eager to be
heard, there was small attempt made at disguising voices.

"You idiots!" Leslie rebuked in a rage, when finally able to make
herself heard. "Have you no sense? Listen to me." Whereupon she centered
her displeased attention on her helpers and berated them roundly for
daring to set up an opinion contrary to her own.

The dissenting dominoes were not to be silenced thus easily and a
spirited altercation began. There were several of the masked company who
were hotly against a punishment such as their leader proposed to visit
upon Marjorie. Meanwhile, the cause of the altercation listened to what
went on with emotions which were a mingling of wrath and amusement. If
she had needed evidence to convince her that her captors were the Sans,
she had it now. She knew from Leila that the Sans were noted for
quarreling among themselves.

After the violent manner in which she had been jerked into the
untenanted house, she had not doubted that she might meet wit