"Wher' you goin'?" demanded Vada, her childish curiosity roused, and all her beautiful spiders forgotten for the moment. Her question remained unanswered, leaving the room in ominous silence. Then Jamie's treble blundered into its midst, dutifully echoing his sister's inquiry. "'Es, wher' you doin'?" The man's eyes were narrowly watching the woman's face. He noted the tremulous lips, the yearning light in her eyes. In a moment he was answering the children, lest their innocent words should upset his plans. "Say, your momma's going for a horse-ride. She's just going right out, and I'm going to show her a dandy place where she can fetch you, so you can catch heaps an' heaps of bugs and spiders. She's just wanting you to stop right here and catch more bugs, till I come along and fetch you." "O--oh!" cried Vada, prolonging her exclamation gleefully. "Say, can't us go now?" "Me do too," murmured her faithful shadow. One quick glance at the mother's face and the man spoke again. "Not now, kiddies. I'll come and fetch you. Run along." Then he turned swiftly upon Jessie. "Where's your bundle?" he asked in his usual masterful manner. And her reply came in a tone of almost heart-broken submission. "In there," she said, with a glance at the inner room. The man gave her no time to add anything more. He felt the ground he was treading was more than shaky. He knew that with the coming of these children a tremendous power was militating against him--a power which would need all his wits to combat. He passed into the inner room, and returned in a moment with the girl's bundle. And with his return one glance showed him how nearly his plans were upset. Jessie was clasping Jamie in her arms, kissing him hungrily, tears streaming down her cheeks, while, out of sheer sympathy, little Vada was clinging to her mother's skirts, her small face buried in amongst them, sobbing as though her heart would break. In a moment he was at her side. This was not a time when any drastic methods could serve him, and he adopted the only course which his shrewd sense told him would be likely to avail. Gently but firmly he took the boy out of her arms. "You want him to go with us?" he said kindly. "Very well. Maybe we're doing wrong--I mean, for his sake. Anyhow, I'll carry him, and then I'll come back for Vada. It's not good. It's too hard on him, carrying him all that distance--too dangerous. Still, I want you to be happy, Jess. I'd do anything for that, even--even at his expense. So--"