s all in such a
fright."

Clemency left James, and ran to her uncle, and clung to him sobbing
hysterically. "Oh, Uncle Tom, don't scold me," she whimpered.

"Are you hurt? What has happened?"

"I am not hurt a bit," sobbed Clemency.

Gordon put his arm around her. "Well," he said, "as long as you are safe
keep your story until we get home. Elliot, take her other arm. She is
almost too used up to walk. Now stop crying, Clemency."

When they were home, in the office, Clemency told her story, which was a
strange one. She had been on her way home from Annie Lipton's, and had
reached a certain house, when the door opened and a woman stood there
calling her. She described the woman and the house, and James gave a
start. "That must be the same woman whom I saw," he exclaimed.

"She was a woman I had never seen," said Clemency. "I think she had only
lived there a very short time."

Gordon nodded gloomily. "I know who she is, I fear," he said. "Strange
that I did not suspect."

"She looked very kind and pleasant," said Clemency, "and I thought she
wanted something and there was no harm, but when I reached her the first
thing I knew she had hold of me, and her hands were like iron clamps.
She put one over my mouth, and held me with the other, and pulled me
into the house and locked the door. Then she made me go into a little
dark room in the middle of the house and she locked me in. She told me
if I screamed nobody would hear me, but she did speak kindly. She was
very kind. Once she even kissed me, although I did not want her to. She
brought a lamp in, and made me lie down on a couch in the room and drink
a glass of wine. She told me not to be afraid, nobody would hurt me. She
seemed to me to be always listening, and every now and then she went
out, but she always locked the door behind her. When she came back she
would look terribly worried. About half an hour ago she went out, and
when she came back brought a tray with tea and bread and cold chicken
for me. I told her I would starve before I ate anything while she kept
me there. She did not seem to pay much attention, she looked so
dreadfully worried. She sat down and looked at me. Finally, she said, as
if she were afraid to hear her own voice, 'Has any accident happened
near here lately that you have heard of?' I told her about the man that
fell down in our drive and died of erysipelas. I did not tell her
anything else. All at once she almost fell in a faint. Then she