"Possibly," replied Sir Charles, "possibly. He was a cowardly fellow, as it seemed to me, when Sholto and I had that interview with him in your morning-room. I should not be surprised; other men have died on the scaffold, at the foot of the gallows, before now. Why not he? But," he said, changing the subject, "since we can do nothing, we must be what assistance we can to her. Now, I propose to set about discovering what he was led out to execution for; what his crime was. It must have been something horribly grave to lead to a man of his position being executed in France; for, although no treaty of peace has as yet been signed between them and us, we are no longer at open strife. And if," he added, "France would but send this Stuart packing, and harbour him no longer, a lasting peace might be secured."[8] "What could it have been, think you?" his wife asked. "Something terrible, to lead to such a conclusion." "Yes," he replied, "yes. Something terrible." Then he devoted himself to the task of discovering what that something terrible could have been. Meanwhile, Kate, after being utterly broken down and lying between life and death for something short of a month, began to mend at last, her naturally fine though delicate constitution enabling her to triumph over the blow she had received. Then she, too, told Lady Ames that she must discover for her own future ease, if not peace of mind, the reason why her wretched husband, after having disappeared for so many months, had met his end in such a way. Also she undeceived her friend in the belief that she had not heard that wretched husband's last words. "For," she said, "I heard them all, clearly and distinctly. Heard them! I hear them now--at night; all day; as I lie here. 'I have seen him. He forgives. He is a prisoner in----.' And," she continued, laying a white, wan hand on that of the other who sat by her bedside, "I know well enough to whom he referred. It was to Bertie, to Mr. Elphinston." "Great heavens!" exclaimed Lady Ames, who, in the excitement of all that had happened since that terrible morning, had absolutely forgotten that this other one was also as mysteriously missing as Lord Fordingbridge had been--"great heavens! to Mr. Elphinston. Yes, it must be. Each word would apply to him. O Kate! what does it all mean?" "God knows what it means; what it points to none can doubt--to the fact that in the prison from which they brought him the other one is incarcerated; though on what charge I cannot dream. Oh, my dear," she exclaimed to her friend, "beg Sir Charles to find out that--those two things, above all: the prison, and the reason why he is detained. Then, when that is discovered, we may do something to obtain his release, since I am known to so many who have influence."