I thought it would be good for me to be married; but I say now that the worst day's work that ever I did, and the wickedest, was when I married Bassett. To give him power over myself, body and soul, was bad enough, he being what he was; but the sin was to give him power over my child. I haven't said it out so plain to any one else; but I believe it is my thoughts dwelling on Martin that make the ghost, and not anything real."

Ken looked worried when he came in to lunch, after another confabulation with McGregor.

"I doubt more and more whether Nevill meant well to us when he left us Mirk Muir," he said when we were alone. "He has had no end of trouble with the tenants—money going out for repairs and claims, and precious little coming in. And this house won't let at any price; nobody will look at it. There is some confounded story which has got about--"

"The story of a ghost: is that what you mean? The ghost of a boy?"

"Who has been telling you about it?" he asked, frowning.

"I have seen it for myself, three times since we came. I saw it again this morning by broad daylight, and then I asked Mrs. Wilding. She says it is seen by some people, and always the same; but she thinks it is a sort of thought-shape, and not a ghost. I am not afraid of it, so you need not mind. What did McGregor tell you?"

"He appears to believe in it, unless he was pulling my leg. He says it has played all manner of what he calls 'pliskies,' and it began to be active when Grant took the house and brought his school. He was the next here after Nevill. McGregor has a notion Nevill saw it himself, and that was why he gave up living here, after going to the expense of building on that outside room. McGregor says the ghost was never heard of till after the chapel room was built; the house was quiet up till then, and of good reputation. It was as if the building disturbed something; though that, of course, is absurd. Now tell me what you saw, and what Mrs. Wilding said."

* * *

I had the opportunity of questioning McGregor myself that evening, as he came round to see Ken. He is a pawky old Scot, with a twinkle of humour in his eye, but I believe he was sincere in what he told me. Oddly enough, his errand was to ask Ken if he would be willing to sell the chapel room. He had just received an offer for it from a certain contractor, who would take it down at his own expense, to re-erect for some purpose connected with the war. The contractor would bind himself to take away the brick foundation and stone flagging, as well as the wooden part, and smooth the garden over to be as it was before. The price offered was less than a third of what it cost Nevill to erect, although all materials have gone up in value; but Ken was glad to realise even so much money, and well inclined to consent.

"I didn't tell him he might be buying the ghost along with it," said the factor with a wag of his head and a smile. "The ghost came with the chapel room, and maybe the ghost will go with it. And if it does, so much the better for the Grange."

"I wish you would tell me what you know about the ghost, Mr. McGregor. I'm very interested and not nervous, and my husband will not mind. It seems a very harmless sort of apparition, and I do not see why anybody should be afraid."

"Just so, ma'am, and I don't know that ever it did harm but once, and that most likely was accident and not intent. We first began to hear about it when Mr. Grant was here with his school of twenty boys, and we thought of it at the first as nothing but the young lads' mischief and a tale.