"Master Julius never turned up all the morning," answered Burns, "so we came to the conclusion that you must have met him as you were going down the drive, and taken him on with you to Westmarket. The chauffeur has only now returned with the car, and he says master Julius never accompanied you at all, so we thought it better to come and tell you at once." Messengers were sent out to make enquiries whether the lad had been seen by anyone during the day, but neither garden, stables, nor farm could contribute even the slightest clue to his movements. Mr. Field was standing in the hall making arrangements to send search-parties in other directions, when there was a ring at the bell, and a lady was ushered in. She was dripping wet, and the light veil over her head clung closely round her troubled and agitated face. "I must apologize for intruding in this manner," she said, "but I am dreadfully anxious about my little boy. He and your son left me about two o’clock, and I have seen neither of them since. I hoped he might have taken shelter here from the storm, so I just came up to see." "It is Mrs. Power, sir, from Sea View Cottage," explained the butler, in answer to Mr. Field’s mystified look. "I believe master Julius often goes to play with the young gentleman." "The impertinent rascal sets all my commands at defiance, it appears," was the angry reply. "It is directly against my wishes, madam, that Julius has made your acquaintance, and I have not the slightest notion where either of the two lads have gone. Your son is certainly not here, and neither is mine, for that matter." "It is a dreadful night for anybody to be out," said Mrs. Power. "I could scarcely battle against the wind and rain as I came along. The lightning has ceased, but there is a regular hurricane blowing from the sea. Robin would not willingly keep me in suspense, as he knows how disturbed I should be, and I can’t help fearing some accident may have happened to them both." All at once Mr. Field’s heart seemed to well up with a sudden rush of fatherly love, such as he had not experienced for years. He had allowed such a thick crust of ambition and avarice to overgrow the softer qualities of his character, that they had been well-nigh extinguished. "What would all my wealth be without my little lad?" was the thought that flashed across him as Mrs. Power spoke, and an agony of apprehension filled his mind. "We must rouse the place at once," he said aloud, "and I will turn out all my men. Surely it can’t be long before we discover the runaways." The wood was thoroughly searched first, but with no result, and every cottage in the village was applied to, but all in vain. Suddenly a sickening fear seized Mrs. Power. "Was it possible that they could have gone upon the beach?" A brawny fisherman shrugged his shoulders hopelessly as he heard her question.