y, he rode briskly over the country, and halted at one of the
mountain streams, and followed along the bank until he reached a house
where once a fastness had stood, called the Black Fort.

He received no answer to his knocks, and impatience getting the upper
hand, Julian opened the door, and passed through the hall into a summer
parlour.

"How now--how is this?" said a woman's voice. "You here, Master Peveril,
in spite of all the warnings you have had!"

"Yes, Mistress Deborah," said Peveril. "I am here once more, against
every prohibition. Where is Alice?"

"Where you will never see her, Master Julian--you may satisfy yourself
of that," answered Mistress Deborah. "For if Dame Christian should learn
that you have chosen to make your visits to her niece, I promise you we
should soon be obliged to find other quarters."

"Come now, Mistress Deborah, be good-humoured," said Julian. "Consider,
was not all this intimacy of ours of your own making? Did you not make
yourself known to me the very first time I strolled up this glen with my
fishing-rod, and tell me that you were my former keeper, and that Alice
had been my little playfellow?"

"Yes," said Dame Deborah; "but I did not bid you fall in love with us,
though, or propose such a matter as marriage either to Alice or myself.
Why, there is the knight your father, and my lady your mother; and there
is her father that is half crazy with his religion, and her aunt that
wears eternal black grogram for that unlucky Colonel Christian; and
there is the Countess of Derby that would serve us all with the same
sauce if we were thinking of anything that would displease her. Though I
may indeed have said your estates were born to be united, and sure
enough they might be were you to marry Alice Bridgenorth."

The good nature of Dame Debbitch could not, however, resist the appeal
of Julian, and she left the apartment and ran upstairs.

The visits of Julian to the Black Fort had hitherto been only
occasional, but his affections were fixed, and his ardent character had
already declared his love. To-day, on her entrance to the room, Alice
reproached him for again coming there against her earnest request. "It
were better that we should part for a long time," she said softly, "and
for heaven's sake let it be as soon as possible--perhaps it is even now
too late to prevent some unpleasant accident. Spare yourself, Julian--
spare me--and in mercy to us both depart, and return not again