was her saying goodbye to Sir Nathaniel, and entrusting to him loving
messages, straight from her heart, to Adam Salton, and of his bearing
when--with an impulse which she could not check--she put her lips to his
and kissed him. Later, when she was alone and had time to think, it was
a passing grief to her that she would have to be silent, for a time, to
Lilla on the happy events of that strange mission.

She had, of course, agreed to keep all secret until Adam should give her
leave to speak.

The advice and assistance of Sir Nathaniel was a great help to Adam in
carrying out his idea of marrying Mimi Watford without publicity. He
went with him to London, and, with his influence, the young man obtained
the license of the Archbishop of Canterbury for a private marriage. Sir
Nathaniel then persuaded old Mr. Salton to allow his nephew to spend a
few weeks with him at Doom Tower, and it was here that Mimi became Adam's
wife. But that was only the first step in their plans; before going
further, however, Adam took his bride off to the Isle of Man. He wished
to place a stretch of sea between Mimi and the White Worm, while things
matured. On their return, Sir Nathaniel met them and drove them at once
to Doom, taking care to avoid any one that he knew on the journey.

Sir Nathaniel had taken care to have the doors and windows shut and
locked--all but the door used for their entry. The shutters were up and
the blinds down. Moreover, heavy curtains were drawn across the windows.
When Adam commented on this, Sir Nathaniel said in a whisper:

"Wait till we are alone, and I'll tell you why this is done; in the
meantime not a word or a sign. You will approve when we have had a talk
together."