"Mr. Dombrain, mum, and----" "Mr. Dombrain," repeated Mrs. Belswin, with a chill of fear at her heart; "what does he want?" "I want you, Jezebel Manners," said Dombrain, making his appearance at the door, with a malignant grin on his coarse red face. The moment she heard the name Mrs. Belswin knew it was all over, and with a cry of agony held out her imploring hands to the lawyer. "Oh, not before her! not before her!" she moaned piteously. Kaituna, overcome with astonishment at this strange scene, went up to Mrs. Belswin as if to protect her, but the woman shrank from her with a moan of pain, and hid her face in her hands. "What does this mean?" demanded Maxwell, as soon as he recovered his breath. "You will soon know," retorted Dombrain, savagely. "Jezebel Manners, Pethram, Belswin, or whatever name you like to call yourself, I warned you the last time we met what I would do if you played me false. You have done so, to my ruin, my shame, my disgrace, and I have come to drag you down to where you have hurled me. This is the woman, officers." One of the detectives advanced and touched Mrs. Belswin on the shoulder. "In the Queen's name, I arrest you----" "Arrest her?" interrupted Kaituna, her face flaming with indignation; "but for what--for what?" "For the murder of Rupert Pethram." Kaituna gave a shriek of horror, and seized Maxwell by the arm, while he, scarcely less thunderstruck, stared at the detective with a look of amazement on his face. "It is false! it is false!" shrieked Mrs. Belswin, throwing herself on her knees before Kaituna, "I swear to you it is false. I did not kill your father." "You did," said Dombrain, in a deep voice, "I saw you do it!" "Liar!" Mrs. Belswin sprang to her feet and made a bound forward, with a fierce light flashing in her eyes, and it would have been a bad thing for Mr. Dombrain had she succeeded in reaching him. The detective, however, was on the watch, and throwing himself on the wretched woman, had the handcuffs on her wrists in a moment. "I cannot believe it! I cannot believe it!" moaned Kaituna, hiding her face on Maxwell's breast.--"Mrs. Belswin, my kind good friend----" "Your friend," scoffed Dombrain, with an ugly glitter in his ferret-like eyes. "Yes, you don't know who your friend is!" "For God's sake, silence!" shrieked Mrs. Belswin, pale to the lips. "No, I will not keep silence, you fiend, who have ruined me. I will tell all. Miss Pethram, do you see that wretched woman with the handcuffs on--that guilty wretch who murdered your father, that----" "I see Mrs. Belswin," cried Kaituna, with sudden fire; "I see the woman who saved me from starvation, and I do not believe this base charge you make." With noble indignation she walked across to Mrs. Belswin, and threw her arm round the poor woman's neck, while Archie, who respected and liked the companion, mutely approved of the girl's generous action.