cautiously to lower himself to the
ground, and Arthur turned to rejoin his friends in the room.

"That is the way she escaped, without doubt," he said to them. "Poor
child, she had no idea we were about to rescue her, and her long
confinement had made her desperate."

"Did she have a cloak, or any warm clothes?" asked Beth. Madame Cerise
hurriedly examined the wardrobe in the closets.

"Yes, ma'm'selle; she has taken a thick coat and a knit scarf," she
answered. But I am sure she had no gloves, and her shoes were very
thin."

"How long do you think she has been gone?" Patsy enquired.

"Not more than an hour. I was talking with Mr. Mershone, and--"

"Mershone! Is he here?" demanded Arthur.

"He is in my room downstairs--or was when you came," said the woman.

"That accounts for her sudden flight," declared the young man, bitterly.
"She doubtless heard his voice and in a sudden panic decided to fly. Did
Mershone see her?" he asked.

"No, m'sieur," replied Cerise.

With one accord they descended to the lower hall and the caretaker led
the way to her room. To their surprise they found Mershone still seated
in the chair by the fire, his hands clasped behind his head, a cigarette
between his lips.

"Here is another crime for you to account for!" cried Arthur, advancing
upon him angrily. "You have driven Louise to her death!"

Mershone raised one hand in mild protest.

"Don't waste time cursing me," he said. "Try to find Louise before it is
too late."

The reproach seemed justified. Arthur paused and turning to Mr. Merrick
said:

"He is right. I'll go help Fogerty, and you must stay here and look
after the girls until we return." As he went out he passed Diana
without a look. She sat in a corner of the room sobbing miserably. Beth
was thoughtful and quiet, Patsy nervous and indignant. Uncle John was
apparently crushed by the disaster that had overtaken them. Mershone's
suggestion that Louise might perish in the storm was no idle one; the
girl was not only frail and delicate but worn out with her long
imprisonment and its anxieties. They all realized this.

"I believe," said Mershone, rising abruptly, "I'll go and join the
search. Fogerty has arrested me, but you needn't worry about my trying
to escape. I don't care what becomes of me, now, and I'm going straight
to join the detective."

They allowed him to go without protest, and he buttoned his coat and set
out in the storm to find the others. Fogerty a