The agonized thought in Frankl's brain was this: “Well, what's the good of prisons, then?”--he, too earnest a financier to read newspaper gossip, having heard not a word of the three escapes from Colmoor. He said: “Well, sir, generally speaking, I'm the last to encourage this sort of thing; but, as yours is a special case, I tell you plain out that, personally, I don't mean a bit of harm to you. Just step into a room here, and let us talk the matter quietly over”. He led O'Hara to his study; and there they two remained locked half an hour, conferring head to head. XXVII THE BAG OF LIGHT Rebekah, having excused herself from three ladies, her guests, alone in her room opened her letter. Glanced first at the “R. H.”, and was not surprised. He had “escaped”, had “come into great power”: that seemed natural; but he “summoned” her to meet him, and she saw no connection between his “great power” and his right to summon her. She held the paper to a fire, and, as it began to burn, in a panic of flurry extinguished the edge, and hustled it into her bosom; then perambulated; then fell to a chair-edge with staring gaze; then, rocking her head which she had dropped upon a little table, moaned: “He is mad....” “My flames of fire! Rebekah! I am dying....” He suffered; and a pussy's wail mewed from her; but with a gasp of anger which said “Ho!” she sprang straight, and went ranging, with a stamping gait, through the chamber, filling it with passion. “I _won't go_!” she went with fixed lips, as something within her whispered: “You must”. To escape herself, she went again to see what had happened with regard to the convict, whose face would carry to the grave the scars of her nails. There were no signs of any disturbance; and she asked a footman: “Where is the man who was here?” “With your father in the study”. That seemed a strange proceeding: she felt a touch of alarm for her father, and, passing again by the study, peeped; could see nothing for the key, but heard voices. This messenger of Hogarth, she next thought, was a criminal: he might betray...so she stole into an adjacent room, to peep by a side door of the study, and though a key projecting toward her barred her vision, the talkers were near this point, and she could hear. “The diamond block”, O'Hara said, “is the same which he rolled across the bridge this morning; to that I'll swear”. “Then it must be the very same block he showed me”, Frankl said in a whisper; “that thing was worth millions....!” “Undoubtedly it was the same”. “Oh, but Lord”, groaned the Jew in an anguish of self-deprecation, “where were my _eyes_? where were my _wits_? I must have been _dreaming_! No, that's hard!” “Well--_nil desperandum_! Let us be acting, sir!” “My own land--!” “They are still safe enough: come--” “He may have lost one or two--in his excitement. Thousands gone! He may have hidden some!” “Tut, he has hidden none”, said O'Hara; “we may have all. Let us make a move”.