"Strangely?" he said, clasping her to his breast, "strangely? Well, I meant to be kind and tender to my poor, suffering little sister. I've been a bad lot, but I always loved my little Claire." She stood gazing wonderingly after him, he seemed so strange in his way, as, after straining her to his breast, he kissed her passionately again and again, and then turned and literally ran from the room, while, as she placed her hand against her face, she found that it was wet. "Poor Fred," she said, "if I could only win him from his ways." She said no more, for her thoughts were only too ready to turn to their usual theme--her father and his imprisonment, and she sat down to rest her aching head upon her hand, wondering what had passed during the interview within the prison walls. Fred Denville found Mr and Mrs Barclay below, and in a quick, agitated way he caught Mrs Barclay's hand. "It's very kind of you to let me call upon my sister," he said, "seeing what I am. I thank you. I am not coming again." "Not coming again? Oh, I'm sure you're welcome enough, Mr Fred, for your sister's sake," said Mrs Barclay, "isn't he, Jo-si-ah?" "Of course, of course." "Thank you--both of you," cried Fred hastily. "You are very good, and that's why I say be kind to my poor sisters, and try and comfort both if anything happens." "Oh, but we must not let anything happen," said Barclay. "The poor old gentleman must be saved." "Yes, of course," said Fred dreamily; "he must be saved. He's innocent enough, poor old fellow. I did not mean that. You'll take care of the poor girls, won't you?" "Why, of course we will, Mr Fred Denville; of course we will. There, don't you make yourself uneasy about them." "I won't," said Fred, in his bluff, straightforward way. "I may be quite happy, then, about Claire?" "To be sure you may." "I shouldn't like her to suffer any more, and it would be terrible for those wretched dandy scoundrels to get hold of her and break her heart." "Don't you fidget yourself about that, young man," said Mrs Barclay with quite a snort. "Your dear sister's too proud for any jack-a-dandy fellow to win her heart." "You're a good woman," said Fred softly. "I'm not much account as a man, but I know a good woman when I meet one, and I wish I'd had such a one as you by me when I was a boy. If I had, I shouldn't have been a common soldier now. Good-bye, ma'am; good-bye, sir. Heaven bless you both." He hurried out, afraid of showing his emotion, and Mrs Barclay turned round wiping her eyes. "There, Jo-si-ah, you see everybody don't think ill of us, bad as we are." "Humph! no," said Barclay thoughtfully; "but I don't understand that chap--he's so strange. Why, surely, old girl, he had no hand in that murder." "Lor'! Jo-si-ah, don't! You give me the creeps all over. I do wish you wouldn't think about murders and that sort of thing. You give me quite a turn. I wouldn't have my dear Claire hear you for the world."