"Good, then follow me," said the other; and both descended from the heath, and, striking at once out of the more frequented paths, made their way through brier and brushwood till Amos had entirely lost all knowledge of where he was. They had ridden thus about two miles when they suddenly emerged on to some cleared ground, and then came to the side of a large brick-field which had been for some time disused. At one end of the field was a small two-roomed cottage substantially built of rough stone. This had been inhabited formerly by a labourer and his family, the man having been a sort of overlooker while the brick-making was going on. Of course there was a standstill to the manufacture at present, but, to the surprise of Amos, smoke was coming out of the cottage chimney. He was surprised, because, as they rode close up to the building, it looked the last place likely to have a tenant at the present time. Its extreme loneliness also struck him, there being no other building in sight anywhere. As they came just opposite to its outer door, Mr Vivian turned to Amos, and said with a malicious smile, "This, sir, is the house." "This!" exclaimed the young man, indignant and horrified,--"this the house where my poor sister lives!" "Even so," was the reply; "any roof to cover you this severe season is surely better than none." "It cannot be," said Amos; but at that moment the door half opened, and a woman's hand and part of her dress appeared. Then the door was rapidly closed, and he heard from within the sound of weeping and wailing. "It must be so, then," he exclaimed sadly, and proceeded to dismount. "Don't trouble about your pony," said the player, "I will look after him. Give me the bridle." Amos did so, and was entering by the low massive door, when to his astonishment a female figure pushed past him into the open air. Then the door was closed upon him, thrusting him forward into the building, while Vivian cried out with a laugh, "_Au revoir, mon ami_--farewell for the present!" The next moment the door was locked, and some heavy weight jammed against it. What could it all mean?