last night?" Helen asked.

"Only that he is 'resting'."

"Some poor, miserable loafer, is he?" demanded Aunt Kate, with acrimony.

"No. It seems that he is an actor," Ruth explained. "He is out of work."

"But he can't think anything of his daughter to see her treated like
this," concluded Aunt Kate.

"She is very proud of him. His professional name is Montague Fitzmaurice."

"Some name!" murmured Jennie.

"Their family name is Pike," said Ruth, still seriously. "I do not think
the man can know how this aunt treats little Bella. There's Tom!"

The young captain appeared behind the enraged housekeeper at the open door
of the loft. One glance told him what Bella had done. He placed a firm
hand on Miss Timmins' shoulder.

"If you had made that girl fall you would go to jail," Tom said sternly.
"You may go, yet. I will try to put you there. And in any case you shall
not have the management of the child any longer. Go back to the house!"

For once the housekeeper was awed. Especially when Henri Marchand, too,
appeared in the loft.

"Madame will return to the house. We shall see what can be done for the
child. _Gare!_"

Perhaps the woman was a little frightened at last by what she had done--or
what she might have done. At least, she descended the ladders to the
ground floor without argument.

The two young men planned swiftly how to rescue the sobbing child. But
when Tom first spoke to Bella, proposing to help her down, she looked over
the edge of the roof at him and shook her head.

"No! I ain't coming down," she announced emphatically. "Aunt Suse will
near about skin me alive."

"She shall not touch you," Tom promised.

"She'll give me my nevergitovers, just as she says. You can't stay here
and watch her."

"But we'll find a way to keep her from beating you when we are gone," Tom
promised. "Don't you fear her at all."

"I don't care where you put me, Aunt Suse will find me out. She'll send
Elnathan Spear after me."

"I don't know who Spear is----"

"He's the constable," sobbed Bella.

"Well, he sha'n't spear you," declared Tom. "Come on, kid. Don't be
scared, and we'll get you down all right."

He found the clothes-stick Miss Timmins had abandoned and used it for a
brace. With a rope tied to the handle of the plank door and drawn taut, it
was held half open. Tom then climbed out upon and straddled the door and
raised his arms to receive the girl when she lowered herself over the
eaves.

She was