seemed safe, and, though not entirely satisfying, she could not see
how it could miscarry. Buckingham was notably jealous of his knightly
word, and she had unbounded faith in her influence over him. In short,
like many another person, she was as wrong as possible just at the
time when she thought she was entirely right, and when the cost of a
mistake was at its maximum.

She recoiled also from the thought of Brandon's "escape," and it hurt
her that he should be a fugitive from the justice that should reward
him, yet she quieted these disturbing suggestions with the thought
that it would be only for a short time, and Brandon, she knew, would
be only too glad to make the sacrifice if it purchased for her freedom
from the worse than damnation that lurked in the French marriage.

[Illustration]

All this ran quickly through Mary's mind, and brought relief; but it
did not cure the uneasy sense, weighing like lead upon her heart, that
she should take up chance with this man's life, and should put no
further weight of sacrifice upon him, but should go to the king and
tell him a straightforward story, let it hurt where it would. With
a little meditation, however, came a thought which decided the
question and absolutely made everything bright again for her, so great
was her capability for distilling light. She would go at once to
Windsor with Jane, and would dispatch a note to Brandon, at Newgate,
telling him upon his escape to come to her. He might remain in hiding
in the neighborhood of Windsor, and she could see him every day. The
time had come to Mary when to "see him every day" would turn Plutonian
shades into noonday brightness and weave sunbeams out of utter
darkness. With Mary, to resolve was to act; so the note was soon
dispatched by a page, and one hour later the girls were on their road
to Windsor.

Buckingham went to Newgate, expecting to make a virtue, with Mary, out
of the necessity imposed by the king's command, in freeing Brandon. He
had hoped to induce Brandon to leave London stealthily and
immediately, by representing to him the evil consequences of a break
between the citizens and the king, liable to grow out of his release,
and relied on Brandon's generosity to help him out; but when he found
the note which Mary's page had delivered to the keeper of Newgate, he
read it and all his plans were changed.

He caused the keeper to send the note to the king, suppressing the
fact that he, Buckingham, had any kn