ut success.

She was just on the point of going into the other room to ask Mary if she
had seen them, when a slight sound attracted her attention, and looking
up, she caught the gleam of a pair of vindictive eyes peering in at her
from the hall, and the next moment the door was violently shut and the
key turned in the lock.

CHAPTER XVII.

THE WOMAN IN BLACK.

For a moment Mona was too much astonished to even try to account for such
a strange proceeding.

Then it occurred to her that Mrs. Montague must have returned before she
was expected, let herself into the house with her latch-key, and coming
quietly up stairs, had been taken by surprise to find her in her room,
when she had supposed her to be safely out of her way in Havana, and so
had made a prisoner of her by locking her in the boudoir.

At first Mona was somewhat appalled by her situation; then a calm smile
of scorn for her enemy wreathed her lips, for she was sure that Ray would
soon return. She had only to watch for him at the window, inform him of
what had occurred the moment he drove to the door, and he would have her
immediately released.

With this thought in her mind, she approached the window to see if he had
not already arrived.

The curtain was down, and she attempted to raise it, when, the spring
having been wound too tightly, it flew up with such a force as to throw
the fixture from its socket, and the whole thing came crashing down
upon her.

She sprang aside to avoid receiving it in her face, and in doing so
nearly upset a small table that was standing before the window.

It was the table having in it the secret treasures which we have already
seen. She managed to catch it, however, and saved the heavy marble top
from falling to the floor by receiving it in her lap, and sinking down
with it.

But while doing this, the broken lid to the secret compartment flew off,
and some of its contents were scattered over her.

Mona was so startled by what she had done, that she was almost faint
from fright, but she soon assured herself that no real damage had
occurred--the most she had been guilty of was the discovery of some
secret treasure which Mrs. Montague possessed.

She began to gather them up with the intention of replacing them in their
hiding-place--the beautiful point-lace fan, which we have seen before, a
box containing some lovely jewels of pearls and diamonds, and a package
of letters.

"Ha!" Mona exclaimed, with a quic