He raised the wisteria, which had grown heavy and more dense. Inside the walled den, the webs stretched thicker and stronger than before. Here and there a spider paused, then ran his way. There was no sound, yet a voice bade him enter. He searched, and in the centre found two stones, placed one on top of the other. He knew they were placed there not by accident. Fear overcame him, and he stood breathless, yet powerless. Then he stooped and raised the stone, which revealed a message that to him was sweeter, dearer than all the world. He hastened back to the cave, and seating himself on the stone steps, where he had pressed her close to him and listened to her golden words of confidence, broke the seal from which there unfolded a musty sheet that in the light of a smiling moon again spoke her heart's content: "DEAR LOVE: "It is for you that I write. None other is worth the while. I am going to-morrow where fate has called me. I have little to offer, except an undying love; all else is theirs; it is decreed right. But so long as the soul is and the heart beats, this love shall be yours and only yours. The spirit which gave it to you shall keep it for you. "Oh, decree of man, where is your relish! I bow to your will, but in him is my god. My Shibusawa, my love, my light! In you life still has hope. Death shall meet its reward. Think of me a little, do not judge me harshly, let me live as my heart tells me, and I shall die happy. The troubles of the earth will be as the joys of heaven, and you shall be the hand that guides me, saves me--oh, I love you so! I cannot live except for you, I shall not die without you. "Believe me, your true love, your sweetheart, "K." The puzzled man read the note again and again with care, then leaned back in silence. He had divined only too truly her fate, and when he thought that possibly she, too, had been put up to the highest bidder, a feeling of faintness took hold of him and he bent forward and sat for a long time unable to move or to decide. CHAPTER XXII A MEETING IN THE GARDEN The cock had already crowed before Shibusawa reached his chamber and lay down to rest. He could not sleep, but arose and went for a walk in the woodland bordering the castle grounds. Here he searched out a secluded spot, where he sat down in the light of early morning to think and plan. The air was still and the sun just beginning to pierce the cool shade of the forest, with here and there a ray of warmth. Presently the quiet was broken by the sound of footsteps approaching through the garden, and looking up he saw Maido coming toward him.