"You have no idea?" "I have no idea where your son is, nor why you are here." She eyed me intently. How cold and determined she looked and how handsome she was. "If I thought you were telling the truth--" "Mrs. Porter!" She handed me a letter. "Please read that," she said. "I will not read it," I replied. "I must beg that you leave me." "There, there, child, I did not mean to be rude." "You are more than rude, you are insolent." "I am distracted, child. Please read the letter." "Very well," I said, "I'll read it." This was the letter: "MY DEAR MOTHER: This will be handed to you at four o'clock. At that hour I shall be in Ventura, accompanied by the Grand Duke Alexander, and, as we are making the trip by automobile, it may be that we shall neither of us return in time for your dinner this evening." "If, however, on reading this you will wire me at Ventura your full consent to my marriage with Miss Middleton, I think I can guarantee that your dinner party will be a success." "I shall be in Ventura till half past four. Should I fail to hear from you by that time, we shall continue our journey toward Los Angeles as fast as our six-cylinders will take us." "It grieves me more than I can tell you to employ this cavalier method against you, but my softer appeals have been in vain." "While not a party to the plot, the duke, I find is something of a philosopher; I do not look for any resistance on his part. If he does resist, so much the worse for him." "Your affectionate son, BLAKELY PORTER." "P. S. Please do not think that Miss Middleton has any knowledge of this plan. She has not." "P. S. Remember! We leave Ventura for Los Angeles at 4:50 p.m. sharp." "Mrs. Porter," I said when I had finished reading the letter, "I am deeply humiliated that Blakely should have done this." "Still, I suppose you would marry him if I gave my consent." "I would not," I replied hotly. "I might marry him without your consent, for I love him dearly; but I would never consider you had given your consent if it were forced from you by trickery." "You wouldn't?" "I would not." "But if he doesn't bring the duke back my dinner will be ruined." "I will telegraph him myself," I said. "Supposing he won't come?" "Blakely will come if I ask him to." "And you will do this for me?" "No; I am not doing it for you." "Then why--" "Because I cannot bear to have Blakely act so ungenerously toward his mother." "He has but used my own weapons against me," she remarked thoughtfully. "Your weapons are quite unworthy of him, Mrs. Porter." "The telegram must be dispatched at once," she announced, glancing impatiently at her watch. "If you will call the office and ask them to send up a boy with some forms, I will think over what I wish to say," I said. When the boy arrived I had decided upon my message. It was: "BLAKELY PORTER, Ventura." "If you do not return at once with your captive I shall consider that we have never met." "ELIZABETH."