"The devil, no doubt?" returned Luke, smiling sternly, "and were sorry to find yourself so hard pressed. Don't disquiet yourself; I am still flesh and blood." "Had I taken you for one of mortal mould," said Dick, "you should have soon seen where I'd have put you in the race. That confounded fog deceived me, and Bess acted the fool as well as myself. However, now I know you, Sir Luke, you must spur alongside, for the hawks are on the wing; and though I've much to say, I've not a second to lose." And Dick briefly detailed the particulars of his ride, concluding with his rencontre with Barbara. "Here's the packet," said he, "just as I got it. You must keep it till the proper moment. And here," added he, fumbling in his pocket for another paper, "is the marriage document. You are now your father's lawful son, let who will say you nay. Take it and welcome. If you are ever master of Miss Mowbray's hand, you will not forget Dick Turpin." "I will not," said Luke, eagerly grasping the certificate; "but she never may be mine." "You have her oath?" "I have." "What more is needed?" "Her hand." "That will follow." "It _shall_ follow," replied Sir Luke, wildly. "You are right. She is my affianced bride--affianced before hell, if not before heaven. I have sealed the contract with blood--with Sybil's blood--and it shall be fulfilled. I have her oath--her oath--ha, ha! Though I perish in the attempt, I will wrest her from Ranulph's grasp. She shall never be his. I would stab her first. Twice have I failed in my endeavors to bear her off. I am from Rookwood even now. To-morrow night I shall renew the attack. Will you assist me?" "To-morrow night!" interrupted Dick. "Nay, I should say to-night. A new day has already dawned," replied Luke. "I will: she is at Rookwood?" "She languishes there at present, attended by her mother and her lover. The hall is watched and guarded. Ranulph is ever on the alert. But we will storm their garrison. I have a spy within its walls--a gipsy girl, faithful to my interests. From her I have learnt that there is a plot to wed Eleanor to Ranulph, and that the marriage is to take place privately to-morrow. This must be prevented." "It must. But why not boldly appear in person at the hall, and claim her?" "Why not? I am a proscribed felon. A price is set upon my head. I am hunted through the country--driven to concealment, and dare not show myself for fear of capture. What could I do now? They would load me with fetters, bury me in a dungeon, and wed Eleanor to Ranulph. What would my rights avail? What would her oath signify to them? No; she must be mine by force. _His_ she shall never be. Again, I ask you, will you aid me?" "I have said--I will. Where is Alan Rookwood?" "Concealed within the hut on Thorne Waste. You know it--it was one of your haunts."