"She will never come back--never, never! When she hears that _he_ is dead--he is lying dead up stairs, Dan--she will never come back; she will drown herself first; for she loved him, and me too; and would have loved you, Dan, but for that false-hearted friend. "You must not say that, Susey," said Dan, pointing to Ellen, who had turned aside weeping. "Look at Ellen. He is her husband, and he is not false-hearted. For her sake you must have kinder, juster thoughts towards Jo." But Susan did not catch the sense of his words. All that she understood was, that he was speaking in defence of Joshua. "All in his favor," she muttered. "If any one is to blame, it is Minnie--that's what all of you will say. But I know better; I know better. Didn't I watch them? Didn't I see him making love to her on the ship? Didn't I see the poor dear that's lying dead up stairs tortured slowly to death? And don't I know who killed him?" "Who, Susan, who?" asked Dan, holding his breath. "Joshua Marvel," said Susan, between her set teeth, with no change upon her face. "And as God's my judge, I will bring him to justice! You are his friends--I know that: you'll try to hide him from me; but I'll do what I've made up my mind to, if I drop down dead the minute after." She twisted her hand from Dan's grasp, and crept slowly into the passage, and thence into the street. And there she stood for many minutes, with the same expression of implacable animosity on her face, waiting for the return of Basil Kindred's murderer. CHAPTER XXVII. WHAT THE NEIGHBORS THINK OF IT.