THE WEIRD SISTERS. A Romance. BY RICHARD DOWLING, AUTHOR OF "THE MYSTERY OF KILLARD." In Three Volumes. VOL. III. LONDON: TINSLEY BROTHERS, 8, CATHERINE ST., STRAND. 1880. [_All rights reserved._] CHARLES DICKENS AND EVANS, GREAT NEW STREET, LONDON. TO EDMOND POWER, ESQ., OF SPRINGFIELD, Whose kindness to Mine and to Me I SHALL NEVER FORGET WHILE I AM. CONTENTS. Part II.--The Towers of Silence--_continued_. VII.--WAT GREY'S BUSINESS ROMANCE 1 VIII.--MAKING HOLIDAY 20 IX.--THE END OF THE HOLIDAY 39 Part III.--Husband and Wife. I.--THE SECRET OF THE SALE 58 II.--"SIR WILLIAM--" "NO; MIDHARST" 77 III.--THE PARTING 96 IV.--BETWEEN THE LIGHTS 116 V.--"A WOMAN OF NO NAME" 142 VI.--PENNILESS 159 VII.--LOSING 174 VIII.--"I AM HE. FIRE." 190 IX.--BANKER AND BARONET 201 X.--GREY REMEMBERS WHAT HE FORGOT 215 THE WEIRD SISTERS. PART II. THE TOWERS OF SILENCE. CHAPTER VII. WAT GREY'S BUSINESS ROMANCE. Grey found his mother in the front parlour of her own house. She was as bright, intelligent as ever, and put down the _Times_ and took off her spectacles as he entered. "Henry," she exclaimed, as he came in, "what is the matter? You are looking like a ghost." "It is only that I have seen one, mother," he said wearily, tenderly, as he kissed her, put his arms round her, and placed her in a chair. "Seen what?" she demanded, looking up impatiently at her stalwart son. "A ghost, mother." "Nonsense, Henry. Of late I see but little of you; and when I do see you, you are full of mysteries, only fit for sempstresses in penny parts. You ought not to treat me as if I wanted to be roused into interest in your affairs by secrets and surprises." She patted her foot impatiently on the floor, and looked with vivacious reproach in his face. He placed his hand gently but impressively on her shoulder, and said, looking down calmly from his large blue frank eyes into her swift bright gray eyes: "I am not, mother, practising any art upon you; I am practising a great art upon myself." She now saw something serious was coming or was in his mind; and while she did not allow her courage to decline, or the resolution of her look to diminish, she asked simply, "And what is that art, Henry?" "That of enduring the company of a villain in the presence of the person I most respect on earth." She looked round the room hastily.