"Where am I--and who are you?" asked Bernardine, amazedly, sitting bolt upright on the wooden settee, and staring in wonder up at the hard face looking down into her own. But before she could answer, a wave of memory swept over Bernardine, and she cried out in terror: "Oh, I remember standing by the brook, and the dark-faced man that appeared--how he caught hold of my arms in a grasp of steel, and I fainted. Did he bring me away from Gardiner Castle?" she demanded, indignantly--"_dared_ he do such a thing?" "Do not get excited," replied the woman, coolly. "Always take everything cool--that's the best way." "But why did he bring me here?" insisted Bernardine. "You will have to ask him when he comes back. He is the only one who can answer that," returned the woman. Bernardine sprung quickly to her feet; but it was not until she attempted to take a step forward that she realized how weak she was. "What are you intending to do?" asked the woman, sneeringly. "Leave this place," replied Bernardine, sharply. "I have no idea as to why I was brought here; but I do not intend to stop for explanations. Step out of my way, please, and allow me to pass." The woman laughed, and that laugh was not pleasant to hear. "That is contrary to my orders. You are to remain here, in my charge, under my eye, until--well, until the person who brought you here says you may go." Bernardine's dark eyes flashed; she looked amazed. "Do you mean to infer that I am to be detained here--against my will?" demanded the girl. "That is as you choose to look at it, miss. I am to coax you to keep me company here, and, if you refuse, to insist upon your doing so; and finally, if it becomes necessary, to _make_ you accede to my wishes, or, rather, the wishes of the one who brought you here." Bernardine drew herself up to her full height, and looked at the woman with unflinching eyes, saying, slowly: "You have lent yourself to a most cruel scheme to entrap an innocent girl; but know this: I would die by my own hand sooner than marry the villain who had me conveyed in this most despicable way to this isolated place. I have no doubt you know the whole story; but I say this: When my poor father died, I was freed forever from the power of my mortal foe. His sword fell from over my head, where he had held it suspended. He can not pursue my hapless father beyond the gates of death." "What you are talking about is an enigma to me," returned the woman, grimly. "If he has not told you the truth about this matter, listen to me, and let me tell it," cried Bernardine, trembling with excitement. "I--I have known this man who had me brought here for long years, and I know him only to fear and distrust him--more than words can express. "One day, quite by accident, he met me on the street--right before my own door--and he stopped short, looking at me with evident admiration expressed in his coarse face and glittering black eyes."