"Very well," said Reginald; "tell me in what dock your ship is lying and I will go to you. You must not go without seeing the Lady Agnes. Stay here and take proper refreshment. I will see to your getting back the quickest way possible."
"Thank you, sir!" said Ben Davies; then, speaking in a low voice so that no one else could hear, he said:
"You will not betray me, sir? You will not let evil happen to me because I listened to that wicked man?"
"No, I will not," said Reginald, "I promise you. You have redeemed yourself. You shall go scot-free. Indeed, I expect you will be rewarded for your care of the Lady Agnes."
"Thank you kindly, sir!" said the man. And then Reginald and Mr. Ewan left the hall.
That same evening there was a great consultation, and it was agreed that the very next day Mr. Ewan, Patience, and the two girls, with their men and women servants, should start north. They would have to go very slowly because of Patience. It was impossible for her to travel on horseback, so a carriage had to be hired, and everything done to ensure the least possible fatigue for her.
Patience wrote to the king, telling him how Agnes had been found. She dwelt but slightly on her disappearance. All she said was: "She was carried away from us by some misadventure or by some evil design, which the Lord has frustrated, and she has mercifully been given back to my arms. Surely her angels have watched over her that her foot should not slip. With your majesty's leave I am taking her back to Westmorland to my home, seeing she has none of her own--De Lisle Abbey, her ancestral home, having passed into the hands of strangers. I would entreat your majesty to inform the queen-dowager of these facts; and also I would remind your majesty that her father died serving that saint and martyr, your most gracious majesty's father, and of your promise to befriend the child, who is fatherless and motherless, with nothing she can call her own. As regards myself, I shall not be here long to protect her. The late events have shattered my health, and I am going home to die; then she will be alone. Praying your majesty's goodness for the orphan, I kiss your majesty's hand, and leave her to your tender mercy.
"PATIENCE BEAUMONT."
"I will take the letter," said Reginald, "and you, Delarry, shall accompany me."
"Willingly," said the young Irish officer; and the two went off together.