stillness. In that stillness Kenric looked fixedly at Aasta through the
dim light. Aasta sank upon her knees, and obeying an impulse that was
upon her she took his hands in her own and touched them with her warm lips.

Kenric felt a strange thrill of pity for this beautiful girl, so lonely
was she, and so much despised of men, and in that moment he bent down
and kissed her head. And at that the maid began to weep, and her hot
tears fell upon his hands.

Neither spoke, but each felt that a new bond of sympathy had been formed
between them. Presently Aasta rose to her seat, and Kenric took his
paddle and drove the boat along into the deeper water.

Down the west coast of Kintyre they sailed until, out across the sea,
they saw the light of a beacon fire shoot up upon the heights of Gigha.
Outward then they steered until they came nigh upon the rocky shores of
that island; and passing many little islets, they sailed between Gigha
and the brownie-haunted island of Cara, just as the day was breaking in
the east.

Here Aasta looked about her with strange bewilderment as though she were
awaking from a dream. Kenric brought the boat inshore and took it
through the long rock tunnel that he had seen many months before from
the deck of his galley. The water was calm now and the tide high.

Aasta looked down into the clear depths where the long tangle of marine
plants swayed with the motion of the light current. Upon the rocky bed
below she saw many ruby-coloured sea anemones, with emerald mosses, and
pearly shells, and silver-scaled fish. From the water she looked to the
vaulted roof. Her eyes were restless with strange wonderment.

"My lord," she said at last, "what place is this that you have brought
me to? And why seem these rocks so familiar to mine eyes? This clear
green water -- the lofty vault of this cave, where the voice echoes in
merry laughter! 'Tis passing strange! Methinks I must have seen them in
some childish dream!"

But Kenric at that moment felt the boat grinding upon a sunken rock, and
Aasta's question passed his notice.

Beyond the tunnel they searched for a safe landing place in one of the
little bays. Aasta pointed to a high cliff that had many caverns
hollowed out in its steep front, and she bade him steer into one of
those caves. Kenric laughed and asked how she thought they could ever
arrive upon the heights by that way. But when she suddenly put her
finger to her lips, in token that she had heard