"And the way he has treated me is a sin and a shame; may God punish me if I don't pay him for it. He promised me ten per cent, of all Brownlock won, and he had ten thousand in his book then; but it may easily amount to as much again. And he knows I would give one of my hands to see Brownlock on the course, and have people point to me and say: 'That's Hinrich Scheel, who trained him; he understands those things better than all the English jockeys.' O Lord! Lord! and I'm to do all this for him, while he leaves me for a whole week in this kennel of Rahnkes' and I'm to come to Goritz the night before the boat, in which I'm to take passage, sails for Mecklenburg, and I must meet him in Goritz woods, and get the two thousand he promised me, but he was not there, and probably thought, 'He must go tomorrow, with or without the money;' but I'll pay him for it, by Heavens! I'll pay him for it." "That would cost you quite as much as him," replied Gotthold; "or do you think the law will set you free because you did everything solely for your master's sake?" "The law, sir! You won't deliver me up to the law," cried Hinrich. "And if I should, could you blame me for it?" Hinrich stopped short, but there was no possibility of escape. Jochen Prebrow's heavy hand rested on his shoulder, and Gotthold had just cocked the pistol, whose barrel glittered in the light of the nearest beacon, of which they were already within a very short distance. A single cry would summon the watchman, if he chose to push matters to extremities. "I am in your power, sir," said he, "and I am not. Neither you nor any other man shall compel me to repeat what I have just told you before a court of justice. I may have imposed upon you with a false tale." "That excuse will not avail you much, Hinrich; we have proofs that the money was not lost, but stolen and placed in your master's hands." And in a few words he told him the contents of Wollnow's letter, adding what he had just learned from old Boslaf, that while searching the bog--to the great astonishment of the men--they had followed the hoof-prints of a horse several hundred paces; and Hinrich's denial would produce little effect in opposition to this and other well-established facts. Hinrich had listened attentively. "I still think you won't give me up to the law, sir," said he; "it's an ugly story, and the less said about it the better, for--for all concerned; but if it must be, why, sir, we poor men are never much better treated than dogs, and these last few days I have fared even worse; so I don't mind going to jail, if he only comes too." It was too dark for Gotthold to see the cruel smile that played around the man's thick lips, as he uttered the last words. "I think I can spare you the jail," he answered, "if you will promise to make no attempt at flight, and obey all my orders implicitly. I will require nothing unreasonable." "I know that, sir," said Hinrich, "and here is my hand."