About ten minutes later, the bell rang
for tea, and, as Virginia did not come down, Mrs. Otis sent up one of the
footmen to tell her. After a little time he returned and said that he could not
find Miss Virginia anywhere. As she was in the habit of going out to the garden
every evening to get flowers for the dinner- table, Mrs. Otis was not at all
alarmed at first, but when six o'clock struck, and Virginia did not appear, she
became really agitated, and sent the boys out to look for her, while she
herself and Mr. Otis searched every room in the house. At half-past six the
boys came back and said that they could find no trace of their sister anywhere.
They were all now in the greatest state of excitement, and did not know what to
do when Mr. Otis suddenly remembered that, some few days before, he had given a
band of gipsies permission to camp in the park. He accordingly at once set off
for Blackfell Hollow, where he knew they were, accompanied by his eldest son
and two of the farmservants.
The little Duke of Cheshire, who was
perfectly frantic with anxiety, begged hard to be allowed to go too, but Mr.
Otis would not allow him, as he was afraid there might be a scuffle. On
arriving at the spot, however, he found that the gipsies had gone, and it was
evident that their departure had been rather sudden, as the fire was still
burning, and some plates were lying on the grass. Having sent off Washington and
the two men to scour the district, he ran home, and despatched telegrams to all
the police inspectors in the country, telling them to look out for a little
girl who had been kidnapped by tramps or gipsies. He then ordered his horse to
be brought round, and, after insisting on his wife and the three boys sitting
down to dinner, rode off down the Ascot road with a groom. He had hardly,
however, gone a couple of miles, when he heard somebody galloping after him,
and, looking round, saw the little Duke coming up on his pony, with his face
very flushed and no hat.
`I'm awfully sorry, Mr. Otis,' gasped
out the boy, `but I can't eat any dinner as long as Virginia is lost. Please,
don't be angry with me; if you had let us be engaged last year, there would
never have been all this trouble. You won't send me back, will you? I can't go!
I won't go!'
The Minister could not help smiling at
the handsome young scapegrace, and was a good deal touched at his devotion to
Virginia, so leaning down from his horse, he patted him kindly on the
shoulders, and said, `Well, Cecil, if you won't go back I suppose you must come
with me, but I must get you a hat at Ascot.'
`Oh, bother my hat! I want Virginia!'
cried the little Duke, laughing, and they galloped on to the railway station.
There Mr. Otis inquired of the station-master if any one answering to the
description of Virginia had been seen on the platform, but could get no news of
her. The stationmaster, however, wired up and down the line, and assured him
that a strict watch would be kept for her, and, after having bought a hat for
the little Duke from a linen-draper, who was just putting up his shutters, Mr.
Otis rode off to Bexley, a village about four miles away, which he was told was
a well-known haunt of the gipsies, as there was a large common next to it. Here
they roused up the rural policeman, but could get no information from him, and,
after riding all over the common, they turned their horses' heads homewards,
and reached the Chase about eleven o'clock, dead-tired and almost heart-broken.
They found Washington and the twins waiting for them at the gatehouse with
lanterns, as the avenue was very dark. Not the slightest trace of Virginia had
been discovered. The gipsies had been caught on Brockley meadows, but she was not
with them, and they had explained their sudden departure by saying that they
had mistaken the date of Chorton Fair, and had gone off in a hurry for fear
they might be late. Indeed, they had been quite distressed at hearing of
Virginia's disappearance, as they were very grateful to Mr. Otis for having
allowed them to camp in his park, and four of their number had stayed behind to
help in the search. The carp-pond had been dragged, and the whole Chase
thoroughly gone over, but without any result. It was evident that, for that
night at any rate, Virginia was lost to them; and it was in a state of the
deepest depression that Mr. Otis and the boys walked up to the house, the groom
following behind with the two horses and the pony. In the hall they found a
group of frightened servants, and lying on a sofa in the library was poor Mrs.
Otis, almost out of her mind with terror and anxiety, and having her forehead bathed
with eau-de-cologne by the old housekeeper. Mr. Otis at once insisted on her
having something to eat, and ordered up supper for the whole party. It was a
melancholy meal, as hardly any one spoke, and even the twins were awestruck and
subdued, as they were very fond of their sister. When they had finished, Mr.
Otis, in spite of the entreaties of the little Duke, ordered them all to bed,
saying that nothing more could be done that night, and that he would telegraph
in the morning to Scotland Yard for some detectives to be sent down
immediately. Just as they were passing out of the dining-room, midnight began
to boom from the clock tower, and when the last stroke sounded they heard a
crash and a sudden shrill cry; a dreadful peal of thunder shook the house, a
strain of unearthly music floated through the air, a panel at the top of the
staircase flew back with a loud noise, and out on the landing, looking very
pale and white, with a little casket in her hand, stepped Virginia. In a moment
they had all rushed up to her. Mrs. Otis clasped her passionately in her arms,
the Duke smothered her with violent kisses, and the twins executed a wild
war-dance round the group.
`Good heavens! child, where have you
been?' said Mr. Otis, rather angrily, thinking that she had been playing some
foolish trick on them.
`Cecil and I have been riding all over
the country looking for you, and your mother has been frightened to death. You
must never play these practical jokes any more.'
`Except on the Ghost! except on the
Ghost!' shrieked the twins, as they capered about.
`My own darling, thank God you are
found; you must never leave my side again,' murmured Mrs. Otis, as she kissed
the trembling child, and smoothed the tangled gold of her hair.
`Papa,' said Virginia quietly, `I have
been with the Ghost. He is dead, and you must come and see him. He had been
very wicked, but he was really sorry for all that he had done, and he gave me
this box of beautiful jewels before he died.'
The whole family gazed at her in mute
amazement, but she was quite grave and serious; and, turning round, she led
them through the opening in the wainscoting down a narrow secret corridor,
Washington following with a lighted candle, which he had caught up from the
table. Finally, they came to a great oak door, studded with rusty nails. When
Virginia touched it, it swung back on its heavy hinges, and they found themselves
in a little low room, with a vaulted ceiling, and one tiny grated window.
Imbedded in the wall was a huge iron ring, and chained to it was a gaunt
skeleton, that was stretched out at full length on the stone floor, and seemed
to be trying to grasp with its long fleshless fingers an old-fashioned trencher
and ewer, that were placed just out of its reach. The jug had evidently been
once filled with water, as it was covered inside with green mould. There was
nothing on the trencher but a pile of dust. Virginia knelt down beside the
skeleton, and, folding her little hands together, began to pray silently, while
the rest of the party looked on in wonder at the terrible tragedy whose secret
was now disclosed to
them.
`Hallo! suddenly exclaimed one of the
twins, who had been looking out of the window to try and discover in what wing
of the house the room was situated. `Hallo! the old withered almond-tree has
blossomed. I can see the flowers quite plainly in the moonlight.'
`God has forgiven him,' said Virginia
gravely, as she rose to her feet, and a beautiful light seemed to illumine her
face.
`What an angel you are!' cried the young Duke, and he put
his arm round her neck, and kissed her.
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