"Well; what then, Miss Lord?"
"Colonel Weatherby is a man of mystery. He has been hunted by Government agents for nearly ten years, during which time he has successfully eluded them. If you know anything of the Government service you know it has a thousand eyes, ten thousand ears and a myriad of long arms to seize its malefactors. It has not yet captured Colonel Weatherby."
"Why has he been hunted all these years?"
"He is charged, as I said, with high treason. By persistently evading capture he has tacitly admitted his guilt."
"But he is innocent!" cried Irene indignantly.
Miss Lord seemed surprised, yet not altogether ill-pleased, at the involuntary exclamation.
"Indeed!" she said softly. "Could you prove that statement?"
"I—I think so," stammered the girl, regretting her hasty avowal.
"Then why not do so and by restoring Mary Louise to her grandfather make them both happy?"
Irene sat silent, trapped.