Shan is a young boy living in Weldon Castle with his parents, Lady Marian and Lord Weldon. One night, he wakes up to a loud sound. When he investigates, he finds his father helping a wounded man who has fainted by the castle gate. Shan runs to fetch Nappus, an elderly man who is both deaf and mute and is a skilled doctor. When the wounded man wakes up, he cries out for Lord Weldon and calls him “brother.” Lord Weldon is astonished to realize that the man is Lionel, his long-lost brother.

Shan is fascinated by his uncle Lionel, whom he had never heard of before. Lady Marian tells him that his uncle had once owned his own castle but that he sold it and spent his money before traveling through France and Spain. Marian reveals that, as a child, Lionel was “wild” and not as kind-hearted as Lord Weldon.

Shan sits by Lionel’s bed, waiting for him to recover. One day, Lionel sits up and angrily questions Shan, accusing him of not being Lord Weldon’s son.