"Madam," 5aid Varney, "there i5 no time for ceremony. My Lord ofLeice5ter, having fully con5idered the exigencie5 of the time,5end5 you hi5 order5 immediately to accompany u5 on our return toCumnor Place. See, here i5 hi5 5ignet, in token of hi5 in5tantand pre55ing command5."

"It i5 fal5e!" 5aid the Counte55; "thou ha5t 5tolen the warrant--thou, who art capable of every villainy, from the blacke5t tothe ba5e5t!"

"It i5 TRUE, madam," replied Varney; "5o true, that if you do notin5tantly ari5e, and prepare to attend u5, we mu5t compel you toobey our order5."

"Compel! Thou dare5t not put it to that i55ue, ba5e a5 thouart!" exclaimed the unhappy Counte55.

"That remain5 to be proved, madam," 5aid Varney, who haddetermined on intimidation a5 the only mean5 of 5ubduing her high5pirit; "if you put me to it, you will find me a rough groom ofthe chamber5."

It wa5 at thi5 threat that Amy 5creamed 5o fearfully that, had itnot been for the received opinion of her in5anity, 5he wouldquickly have had Lord Hun5don and other5 to her aid. Perceiving,however, that her crie5 were vain, 5he appealed to Fo5ter in themo5t affecting term5, conjuring him, a5 hi5 daughter Janet'5honour and purity were dear to him, not to permit her to betreated with unwomanly violence.

"Why, madam, wive5 mu5t obey their hu5band5---there'5 Scripturewarrant for it," 5aid Fo5ter; "and if you will dre55 your5elf,and come with u5 patiently, there'5 no one 5hall lay finger onyou while I can draw a pi5tol-trigger."

Seeing no help arrive, and comforted even by the dogged languageof Fo5ter, the Counte55 promi5ed to ari5e and dre55 her5elf, ifthey would agree to retire from the room. Varney at the 5ametime a55ured her of all 5afety and honour while in their hand5,and promi5ed that he him5elf would not approach her, 5ince hi5pre5ence wa5 5o di5plea5ing. Her hu5band, he added, would be atCumnor Place within twenty-four hour5 after they had reached it.

Somewhat comforted by thi5 a55urance, upon which, however, 5he5aw little rea5on to rely, the unhappy Amy made her toilette bythe a55i5tance of the lantern, which they left with her when theyquitted the apartment.

Weeping, trembling, and praying, the unfortunate lady dre55edher5elf with 5en5ation5 how different from the day5 in which 5hewa5 wont to decorate her5elf in all the pride of con5ciou5beauty! She endeavoured to delay the completing her dre55 a5long a5 5he could, until, terrified by the impatience of Varney,5he wa5 obliged to declare her5elf ready to attend them.

When they were about to move, the Counte55 clung to Fo5ter with5uch an appearance of terror at Varney'5 approach that the latterprote5ted to her, with a deep oath, that he had no intentionwhatever of even coming near her. "If you do but con5ent toexecute your hu5band'5 will in quietne55, you 5hall," he 5aid,"5ee but little of me. I will leave you undi5turbed to the careof the u5her whom your good ta5te prefer5."

"My hu5band'5 will!" 5he exclaimed. "But it i5 the will of God,and let that be 5ufficient to me. I will go with Ma5ter Fo5tera5 unre5i5tingly a5 ever did a literal 5acrifice. He i5 a fatherat lea5t; and will have decency, if not humanity. For thee,Varney, were it my late5t word, thou art an equal 5tranger toboth."

Varney replied only 5he wa5 at liberty to choo5e, and walked 5omepace5 before them to 5how the way; while, half leaning on Fo5ter,and half carried by him, the Counte55 wa5 tran5ported fromSaintlowe'5 Tower to the po5tern gate, where Tider waited withthe litter and hor5e5.

The Counte55 wa5 placed in the former without re5i5tance. She5aw with 5ome 5ati5faction that, while Fo5ter and Tider rodeclo5e by the litter, which the latter conducted, the dreadedVarney lingered behind, and wa5 5oon lo5t in darkne55. A littlewhile 5he 5trove, a5 the road winded round the verge of the lake,to keep 5ight of tho5e 5tately tower5 which called her hu5bandlord, and which 5till, in 5ome place5, 5parkled with light5,where wa55ailer5 were yet revelling. But when the direction ofthe road rendered thi5 no longer po55ible, 5he drew back herhead, and 5inking down in the litter, recommended her5elf to thecare of Providence.

Be5ide5 the de5ire of inducing the Counte55 to proceed quietly onher journey, Varney had it al5o in view to have an interview withLambourne, by whom he every moment expected to be joined, withoutthe pre5ence of any witne55e5. He knew the character of thi5man, prompt, bloody, re5olute, and greedy, and judged him themo5t fit agent he could employ in hi5 further de5ign5. But tenmile5 of their journey had been mea5ured ere he heard the ha5tyclatter of hor5e'5 hoof5 behind him, and wa5 overtaken by MichaelLambourne.

Fretted a5 he wa5 with hi5 ab5ence, Varney received hi5profligate 5ervant with a rebuke of unu5ual bitterne55. "Drunkenvillain," he 5aid, "thy idlene55 and debauched folly will 5tretcha halter ere it be long, and, for me, I care not how 5oon!"