“My God! how grateful am I! The one painful feeling of my life is scattered to the winds. Oh, Mabel! Mabel! Can you still love me as I adore you?” “Dear William, why doubt poor Mabel’s love? How it has grown with my growth! It has been my pride and my joy that my happiness was centred in you.” “Ah! and yet,” uttered the Lieutenant, in a tone of bitter self-reproach, “I apparently loved another.” “No, William, you loved Mabel. In the midst of your love for Marie, Mabel was flitting before your mind’s eye, the pale, thin, careworn face of the child you protected was still struggling for a place in your heart—confess it.” “Mabel, you are an angel,” and pressing her to his heart he fondly kissed her cheek. A shadow crossed the grotto’s mouth, and Julia Plessis entered laughing, saying— “Well, upon my word, strange things do occur in this world. I left you, monsieur, with a woman, and lo! I hear you say she’s an angel; never after this doubt the holiness of the Hermit’s Grotto.” Before another word could be said a darker shadow crossed the grotto’s mouth, and caused the three absorbed inmates to start to their feet. The tall form of a man, with a fishing rod in his hand and a basket at his back, stood before them, and at a glance Lieutenant Thornton recognised Captain Gramont. Raising his hat from his head, the Frenchman bowed with the utmost courtesy, saying— “Pardon me, ladies, and you Monsieur de Tourville, for this intrusion; it was quite unintentional. I was crossing the rocks towards the stream on the other side to try and tempt a large trout out of this famous pool, when I encountered a rather strange individual. I spoke to him, but he looked at me as if I were a wild beast, shook his head, and made a horrid noise in his throat.” “Ah!” interrupted our hero, inclined to laugh, though exceedingly annoyed at the interruption, “you met my man, Pierre Bompart; he is deaf and dumb, but as faithful a fellow as ever lived.” There was a curl on Monsieur Gramont’s lip as he bowed; and as all left the grotto, he observed— “I have no doubt of his fidelity, for he seemed decidedly inclined to throw me over the rocks, and I really did not offend him. But I have to beg your pardon, Monsieur de Tourville, for not having called at Coulancourt. I have been absent. The Government has made me Maire of this arrondissement, and I had to proceed to Rouen; but I had intended doing myself that honour to-morrow.” Our hero bowed, and as he could do no less, and politeness required it, he introduced the two ladies to the unwelcome intruder. Monsieur Gramont could scarcely conceal his admiration as he acknowledged the introduction to Mademoiselle de Tourville, but to Mademoiselle Plessis he said in a gay tone— “Though I have not had the pleasure of an introduction before, I have had the happiness of seeing Mademoiselle Plessis.”