"Perhaps, Mr. Stephens," said the Earl, when the ceremony was thus completed, "you and your friends will do me the honour to accept of a slight refreshment in an adjoining room. You will excuse my absence; but I have a few matters of pressing importance to transact with my solicitor, and which cannot possibly be postponed. You must accept this as my apology; and believe in my regret that I cannot keep you company." The Earl shook hands with both Stephens and Sydney, and bowed to Mac Chizzle. These three individuals then withdrew. An elegant collation was prepared for them in another apartment; but Mac Chizzle was the only one who seemed inclined to pay his respects to it. Walter, however, gladly swallowed a glass of wine; for she felt exhausted with the excitement she had passed through. Stephens was too highly elated either to eat or drink, and too anxious to complete the business in the City, to allow Mac Chizzle to waste much time over the delicacies of which the collation consisted. They were, therefore, all three soon on their way to the Bank of England. "Well, I think we managed the job very correctly," said Mac Chizzle. "Everything passed off precisely as I had anticipated," observed Mr. Stephens. "But you, Walter--you are serious." "I do not look upon the transaction in the same light as I did a couple of hours since," answered she coldly. "Ah! my dear friend," cried Stephens, "you are deceived by the apparent urbanity of that nobleman, and the mildness of his solicitor. They assumed that appearance because there was no help for them;--they had no good to gain by throwing obstacles in our way." "But the certificate of _my_ death was a forgery," said Walter, bitterly. "A necessary alteration of names--without which the accomplishment of our plan would have been impossible," answered Stephens. "But let me ease your mind in one respect, my dear Walter. That nobleman is a relation of yours--and yet until this day his name has never been mentioned to you. And why? Because he visits upon you the hatred which he entertained for your deceased mother! Did you not observe that he interrupted me when I spoke of her? did you not notice that he touched with extreme aversion upon the topics connected with your revered parents?" "I did!--I did!" exclaimed Walter. "He hates you!--he detests you!" continued Stephens, emphatically; "and he will not countenance any claim which you might advance towards kinship with him. His duties as a nobleman and a gentleman dictated the outward civility with which he treated you; but his heart gave no echo to the words of congratulation which issued from his lips." "I believe you--I know that you are speaking the truth," cried Walter. "Pardon me, if for a moment I ceased to look upon you as a friend."