Then the lady opened her eyes, and the subject dropped. But when Hawthorne was gone, the horror of his suggestion staid in Cissy's mind, and she admitted to herself that it might be plausible. For what if Standish, by threatening the woman with betrayal to her employer, had forced her to help him in his nefarious plot? Cissy was so excited and indignant that she was on the point of rushing to Miss Erroll and taxing her with the crime. But sober second thought restrained her. She might frighten the woman, and cause her to run away out of reach. She decided to leave it all to Hawthorne and the detective. Meanwhile, she had enough on her hands to soothe the agonized mother, who was almost frantic with grief over the mystery of her daughter's fate. She kept wringing her hands and sobbing: "It is two long weeks since she disappeared. Oh, it is too late! too late! for any one to save my poor child now!" Cissy shuddered at all that the words implied, but she cried, bravely: "Do not let us despair. Although Geraldine's whereabouts are unknown to us, she is in the keeping of God, as she has always been, and surely He will protect her. Let us hope and pray." Gradually she infused some hope into the mother's heart, and presently they knelt and prayed to God to restore Geraldine to their arms again. Meanwhile, Hawthorne, as we will continue to call him for a little while, hurried to the office of Norris, the wonderful Western detective. He found the little man in, and after a hurried greeting, said: "I have called again about that case of mine." "Ah, you wish to begin another search for the girl; is that it? I thought it strange you dropped it so suddenly when you got my report. But perhaps you had received news some way of the girl?" "I had; but, Norris, that was a terrible mistake of mine letting you drop the case when you did. You were on the right track, though you did not know it. I am almost hoping you kept on watching, out of curiosity, after I paid and dismissed you. It will be worth much to you if you did," anxiously. "But I did not, I'm sorry to say; for directly after I got your check I went off on a chase down South after some gold-brick swindlers. Fact is, I just got back from Richmond yesterday, after a stay of three weeks. But I ran the rascals down, though, after a very exciting chase. Tell you all about it," bustled the little detective, importantly. "No, I don't care about it now," Hawthorne cried, impatiently. "You must hear my story first, for you must never pause now till that missing girl is found--the girl who was right under your nose all the time while you were watching the governess--Miss Fitzgerald, formerly Geraldine Harding." "You don't say! Tell me all about it, sir." Hawthorne went rapidly over all he had to tell, and then Norris said: "The governess helped him, as sure as you're born, Mr. Daly." CHAPTER LV. DETECTED.