g step came up the
stairs, the door was thrown open, and Ralph rushed into the room.

"General Marston! Colonel Middleton!" he gasped out, breathing hard,
"will you, both of you, come to my father's room at once? He has sent
for you."

"Good gracious! Is he worse?" I exclaimed.

"No. Hush! Don't ask anything, but just come,"--and he turned and led
the way to Sir George Danvers's room.

We followed in wondering silence, and, after passing along numerous
passages, were ushered into a large oak-panelled room with a great
carved bed in it, in the middle of which, bolt-upright, sat Sir George
Danvers, pale as ivory, his light steel eyes (so like Charles's) seeming
to be the only living thing about him.

As we came in he looked at each of us in turn.

"Where is Charles?" he said, speaking in a hoarse whisper.

"Dear me! Sir George," I said, sympathetically, "how you _have_ lost
your voice!"

He looked at me for a moment, and then turned to Ralph again.

"Where is Charles?" he asked a second time, in the same tone.

"Here!" said a quiet voice. And Charles came in, and shut the door.

CHAPTER IX.

The two pairs of steel eyes met, and looked fixedly at each other.

A tap came to the door.

Sir George winced, and made a sign to Ralph, who rushed to it and bolted
it.

"I am coming in, George," said Lady Mary's voice.

"Send her away," came a whisper from the bed.

This was easier said than done. But it _was_ done after a sufficiently
long parley; and Lady Mary retired under the impression that Ralph was
sitting alone with his father, who thought he might get a little sleep.

"Now," whispered Sir George, motioning to Ralph.

"The fact is," said Ralph, "the jewels are gone! They have been stolen
in the night."

He bolted out with this one sentence, and then was silent. Marston and I
stared at him aghast.

"Is there no mistake?" said Marston at last.

"None," replied Ralph. "I put them in a drawer in the great inlaid
writing-table in the library last night, before everybody. I went for
them this morning, half an hour ago, at father's request. The lock was
broken, and they were gone."

There was another long silence.

"I was a fool, of course, to put them there," resumed Ralph. "Charles
told me so; but I thought they were as safe there as anywhere, if no one
knew--and no one did except the house party."

"Were any of the servants about?" asked Marston.

"Not one. They had all gone to bed excep