The steady, awful look in the young girl's eyes made the woman quail in spite of her bravado. "I--I do not care for my father's wealth, but that he should curse me--oh, that is too much--too much. Oh, God, let me die here and now, that I may follow him to the Great White Throne and there kneel before him and tell him all my pitiful story!" "That is a pretty theory, but people cannot go to and come at will from the Great White Throne, as you call it. You had better get back to the realities of life on this mundane sphere, where you find yourself just at present. I repeat for the third time that you are disinherited. I cannot seem to make you grasp that fact. This home and everything in it belongs absolutely to me." Faynie heard and realized, and without a word, turned and staggered like one dying toward the door, but her stepmother put herself quickly before her. "Sit down there. I have something else to say to you," she added in a shrill whisper, pushing the girl into the nearest seat. "I must go. I will not listen," cried Faynie, struggling to her feet. "Yes, you shall listen and comply with my proposition," exclaimed her stepmother, her glittering eyes fastened on the beautiful face of the girl she hated so intensely. CHAPTER XII. IMPENDING EVIL. We must return for one brief instant, dear reader, to our hero, Lester Armstrong, whom we left as he was being hurried off to the hospital on the night which proved so thrillingly eventful. At the first rapid glance, the surgeon had believed his patient dying, but upon examination after he had reached the hospital, it was discovered that his injury was by no means as serious as had been apprehended; but a trouble quite as grave confronted the patient. "An injury to the base of the brain, such as he has received, no matter how slight, might, in this instance, produce either insanity or partial loss of memory, which is almost as bad," said the surgeon. "It will soon be determined when consciousness, returns to him." This indeed proved to be the case. Just as daylight broke Lester Armstrong opened his eyes, looking in amazement around the strange apartment in which he found himself. A kindly-faced nurse bent over him, who, in answer to his look of inquiry, said: "You had a severe fall and hurt yourself last night and was brought to the hospital. You are doing finely. Can you remember anything about the incident?" Lester looked up vacantly into the dark-gray eyes. "I--I was in a hurry to close my books at the office; that is all I recollect," he murmured. From documents found in his pockets, it was learned that he had some connection with the great dry goods house of Marsh & Co., and the senior member of the firm was notified. Within an hour Mr. Marsh responded in person. He was greatly distressed over the occurrence and took it deeply to heart.