thing which had greatly worried and puzzled her passed like the
mist before the morning sun. It must be so, and she understood now why
Dane had not told her.

Rising swiftly to her feet, she approached the couch.

"Are you Dane Norwood's father?" she asked in a voice that trembled
with emotion and excitement.

With a gurgling cry, the man sat bolt upright, and glared at the girl.

"Why do you ask me that?" he demanded. "How dare you mention that name
in this house? What do you know about him?"

"I know him to be one of the best men I have ever met. Next to my
father I love him more than any one in the world."

"You do!" It was all the man could say, so great was his astonishment.
He dropped back upon the pillow, breathing heavily, and clutching hard
at his side.

"Yes, I know him," Jean continued, "and I think I understand now why he
never told me about you. And he had good reason, too."

"And he never told you what kind of a being I am?" the man asked in a
hoarse whisper.

"He said nothing about you at all."

"Are you sure, Miss? Didn't he tell you how I forced him to leave
home, and told him never to come here again?"

"He said nothing to me about it, Mr. Timon. He never mentioned your
name, and when I asked him about his father, he always changed the
subject."

"My God! Did he!" The man's hands clutched hard at the blanket, and
his eyes turned upon the girl's face expressed something of the agony
of his soul. "And he never betrayed me," he murmured as if to himself.
"Did he tell you about his mother?"

"Oh, yes, he often spoke to me about her, and told me what a noble
woman she was. He said that he owed everything to her."

"He did, eh? Well, I guess it's true. She influenced him more than I
did, and that was why he left after her death."

"Why was that?"

"He followed her in loyalty to King George. Later he joined the King's
rangers, and became Davidson's chief courier, 'The King's Arrow,' as he
is called. That was more than I could stand."

"And so you had a fight?"

"No, not a fight, Miss. I was hot, I acknowledge, but Dane never said
a word. I can't forget, though, the look in his eyes as he left me,
and I have not seen him since."

"But you have heard about him, I suppose?"

"Oh, yes, reports of his doings reach me from time to time; that is
all." The man sighed, and shifted a little to an easier position.

"Would you like to see him?" Jean asked. "I am sure that he