"Will nothing move you, woman?"
"Nothing," sneered Mrs. Scarlet. "Your brother sent my husband to a dungeon, and to his death, and for that and other wicked work of his, I mean to be avenged. I shall cause him to suffer through his sister. You imagine the handsome Elliston a monster, I reckon, but I will show you that he is but a child compared to Madge Scarlet."
"Stop; I do not care to listen to you. Please hand over the keys to this den of demons."
A cocked pistol was brought forward to emphasize the fair prisoner's demand.
A sneering laugh answered the girl's demand. Madge Scarlet did not seem to look upon the weapon as a dangerous one.
"Quick! I have no time to parley. Fling down the keys—toss them to the door yonder, then take your place in yonder corner. Do you hear me?"
So stern was the girl's voice, so full of intense meaning, as to amaze the infamous woman who confronted her.
"This is all a joke——."
"It will prove a dear joke to you if you don't obey. Stop. One step toward me and I fire! I am in deadly earnest."
And the sneering Madge Scarlet realized that she was. It was a most humiliating position. Once the woman thought of making a quick spring, but a pressure of the trigger was all that was necessary to send a bullet on an errand of death.