ustin O'Reilly, it was at Albuquerque I first saw him. It
came out that he was taking a short holiday in California, and I heard
talk about his visiting some place where he and his father had lived. I
had the impression of his being a California man. Mr. Heron had helped
O'Reilly to get into Congress. They weren't intimate, though I believe
they're distantly related, but Mr. Heron wanted to see him before he
went East, and wired for O'Reilly to meet them at Albuquerque. When I
arrived, expecting to find only Louis in the house, they were all there.

"It was a shock and a blow to me to see the Herons. I'd meant to lie,
and tell Louis I'd come to him because I'd changed my mind, and liked
him better than I thought. But to account for my sudden appearance,
uninvited, to Dolores, who hated me, was another matter.

"She and her husband supposed I was living quietly at school, mourning
for my dead brother. I had to make up a story quickly. I said that I'd
lost my position, and hoped they would put me up at Albuquerque until I
could get another. They couldn't turn me out that night. And Louis was
fairly well again by that time. He was very glad to see me. I made the
most of his welcome--for Stephen's sake. You see, I _had_ to succeed! I
wrote a note, and slipped it into Louis' hand. In it I hinted that I had
something very particular to say to him. He must go to his own rooms as
soon as he could--he had a whole suite to himself which he could shut
off from the rest of the house. It was on the ground floor. I said I
would go to him there.

"Now comes the most terrible part of my story. Roger, you may hate me
when you've heard the rest! I went to Louis' room. He let me in. I told
him that I had changed my mind. I would marry him if he wanted me to,
but only on one condition. I said I'd heard from friends of Stephen's
that Mr. Heron was keeping documents which concerned our dead father;
that they were with other private papers, in the Albuquerque house, and
in Louis' charge. If he would give the whole bundle to me to look over,
and choose what I wished to take away, I'd be his wife whenever he
wanted me.

"He tried to seize me in his arms, but I threatened to go away at once
unless he kept quiet, and did as I told him. There was a packet of
papers, he admitted, but he vowed to me that they were only business
papers. They were compromising to John Heron, and would do him immense
harm--worse than ever, now that he'd just come su