"Hullo, boys! What brings you here?"
"We—came out—the gate was open," Frank answered.
"And you wanted a breath of fresh air? And, indeed, 'tis a shame to keep you mewed up in the court. But you'll be lost, and that won't do. Come now, jump in here, and I'll take you as far as the north gate, and then you can run back to the Castle. I'm doing this for you, Frank—you're a right brave little chap; not for you, Fred, that wanted to burn the old place down."
"No, not the place at all, Jacob; only grandma's cap. The west happened of itself," Fred explained.
"Fred, it was not right," put in Frank.
"I never will again, Fwank—weally never."
"You won't have a chance, you little fool," said Jacob. "Maria was telling me Mrs. Rayburn won't keep you, even if my lord would let her. You'll be sent away, and Frank will stay till he's old enough to go as a page-boy at Beaucourt. That's what Mrs. Rayburn has made up her mind to."
Fred, thoroughly frightened, clung to his poor little protector, who whispered—
"I'll save you; only don't say a word."
They soon reached the north gate. It was open, and Jacob said to the boys—