Suddenly the opening came. He closed in. The rapiers slipped past until hilt met hilt. With a snapping twist Frank tore the weapon from the fingers of his foe and sent it spinning aside. Darleton was at Merry’s mercy. Frank had been forced into this engagement in a way that made it something entirely different from an ordinary affair of honor. He was surrounded by enemies. No friends were present. He could have ended Fred Darleton’s life with a single stroke. Instead of that, he stepped quickly aside, picked up the rapier and offered it to his foe, hilt first. Chagrined by what had happened, Darleton snatched it and made a quick thrust at Merry’s throat. By a backward spring, Merry escaped being killed. Instantly a wonderful change came over Frank. He closed in and became the assailant. Twice he thrust for Darleton. He was parried, but he guarded instantly and prevented the fellow from securing a riposte. Merry’s third attempt was more successful. He caught Darleton in the shoulder and inflicted a superficial but somewhat painful wound. Exclamations came from the masked witnesses. Infuriated by his poor success and the wound, Darleton threw caution to the winds and sailed into Merry like a tornado. “It’s your life or mine!” he panted, as he made a vicious thrust at Frank’s heart. The thrust was turned. Then a cry of horror broke from the spectators, for Frank seemed to have run his antagonist clean through the body. Darleton fell. One of the masked men, who seemed to be a surgeon, knelt at once to examine the wound. “I’m sorry,” said Frank grimly; “but I call on you all to bear witness that he forced me to it. As he said, it was his life or mine.” -------------- The following day Frank visited Darleton in the hospital whither the unfortunate fellow had been taken. The wounded man’s injury had been pronounced very serious, but not necessarily fatal. The course of the steel had been changed by a rib, and only Darleton’s right side had been pierced. The moment they were left alone, Darleton said: “You did the trick, Merriwell. I didn’t believe you could, but you were justified in defending yourself. I made every man there take a solemn oath that he would keep silent no matter what happened.” “I have been expecting and waiting for arrest,” said Frank. “I supposed you would have me arrested.” “You’re wrong. You’ll never be arrested for this affair unless you go to the police and peach on yourself. They say I’ll get well, all right. I want to. Do you know what I mean to do?” “No.” “I’m going to practice until I can defeat you with the rapiers, if it takes me years. When I am confident that I can do the trick, I’m going to find you, force you to fight again and kill you. It would be no satisfaction to me to see you arrested for last night’s work. Unless you’re a fool, you’ll not be arrested. If you were arrested and told the truth, you could not be punished for defending yourself.”