"There is some one listening! Quick; there is something wrong." He ran to the door, and as he flung it open there was a hasty step upon the gravel, and then a heavy fall. The next moment he was raising the insensible form of poor Madge from the path, for she had been unable to resist the temptation to steal up and have one more glance at the old home before returning to Gwennas, but her strength was exhausted now; and when, after being carried into the house and laid upon the sofa, Mrs Mullion threw herself sobbing upon her knees beside her child, Geoffrey placed his hand upon the old man's shoulder, and pointed to the pair. "Is she to stay, Uncle Paul?" he said, softly. "God forgive her as I do, my boy," the old man replied, in a broken voice. "I need ask for pardon as well as she." Geoffrey hesitated about leaving, but, on looking into the room again, he saw mother and child clasped in each other's arms, and he stole softly away to where Uncle Paul stood in the doorway. "Come," said Geoffrey. "I must have another cheroot, Uncle Paul, and then for home." "Home?" said the old man, gently; "will you not come here once more?" "Yes--no--yes--no; I cannot say to-night, but whether I do or no, old fellow, the good old days shall come again for us. Why, Uncle Paul," he cried, puffing away at his fresh cheroot which he had lit from that in the old man's lips, and laying his hands upon his shoulders, "if it were not too late we'd go into the summer-house and have another row. Hallo! who's this?" For hasty steps were heard coming up towards the gate, and a hoarse voice cried,-- "Trethick--Master Trethick! Pengelly said Master Trethick had come up here." "Prawle," cried Geoffrey. "You here! Why, what's wrong?" "Murder's what's wrong," cried the old man, hoarsely. "Quick, man, quick! You come along o' me." CHAPTER FIFTY SEVEN. A STRUGGLE FOR LIFE AND DEATH. Bessie was rather longer than usual with her mother that night, but at last the invalid was comfortably settled, and when she went back into the sitting-room the child was just beginning to be restless. "Will you come and stay with him a minute, Madge?" she said. "I'll be back directly;" but there was no answer. "Madge! Madge!" Bessie felt frightened. She could not tell why, but, with a feeling that something was wrong, she ran to Madge's room, but only to find it empty, and her hat and cloak gone. "And Mr Trethick told me not to let her go again!" Bessie felt more troubled than she could express, and, recalling Madge's strange and excited ways, she felt now sure that there was something wrong. "I might overtake her if she has gone along the cliff," she said to herself; and, without hesitation, she threw on her cloak and hat, and had gone to the door ready to run up to the cliff, when the little one began to remonstrate loudly about being left alone.