"You'll let me stay, won't you, sissy, dear? I'm too old to travel straight back to the country," said Uncle Ben, coaxingly, while he turned a glance of meek pleasure and triumph on the others. "Alas! dear uncle, this is not my home. I can not invite you to remain, much as I wish to do so," sighed the young girl. CHAPTER XL. A NEW-FOUND RELATIVE. As I came through the Valley of Despair, As I came through the valley, on my sight, More awful than the darkness of the night, Shone glimpses of a past that had been fair. E. W. WILCOX. Uncle Ben Carew stared in surprise at his niece when she made her strange declaration; but she continued, sadly: "Uncle Ben, you must not blame papa for his seeming cruelty to you and me when I tell you all. But--but dear papa, when he died, disinherited me, and left his wealth to these two heartless women here." "Good land! my child, what had you done to turn Vince against you?" "Nothing, dear uncle! but I believe that cunning arts were employed by some other people to turn my father's heart against his child," answered Kathleen, spiritedly. "Mamma, will you permit Kathleen to belittle us in our very presence, and in our own house?" exclaimed Alpine, angrily. Kathleen looked at her step-sister, who stood at the back of the chair into which she had assisted the pale and trembling Ivan. "I have no desire to remain in your house a moment longer than is necessary," she said, proudly. "I am going at once, and I will take my uncle with me as a guest in my friend's house. But before I go, Mrs. Carew, please give me my diamond necklace." "There is some mistake. I know nothing about your diamonds. I did not take them from the jewellers," answered Mrs. Carew, angrily; but there was such a ring of truth in her voice that Kathleen believed her for once. She turned to Alpine. "Perhaps _you_ have the diamonds?" she said, interrogatively. "I have _not_. I thought you took them with you when you went away, and that they were stolen from you when you were robbed that night," answered Alpine, earnestly. "I believe you," said Kathleen, and her burning glance fell on Ivan Belmont as he cowered before her in his seat. "It is you," she said, shaking a disdainful finger in his face; "it is you to whom I must look for my jewels! Where are they? What have you done with them?" He tried hard to stammer a weak denial of all knowledge of them, but even his own mother and sister knew that he was lying. Kathleen's great flashing eyes surveyed him in bitter scorn.