ssed each other?"

Mrs. Payne nodded. Gabrielle looked at her challengingly. "It was the
first time," she said. There was a pause and then she burst out
passionately. "I love him ... we love each other. You can't stop us!"

"It's got to be stopped," said Mrs. Payne.

Gabrielle turned away and perched herself on the end of the bed. She
appeared to be thinking, and when next she spoke it was almost dreamily.

"It was the first time. We didn't know before to-night."

There was nothing dreamy about Mrs. Payne's reply. She believed that
Gabrielle was acting a part, and had no patience with her.

"That's rubbish," she said. "I don't believe it."

Gabrielle jumped to her feet and faced her again, blazing with pride and
anger and amazingly beautiful.

"You don't believe me? How dare you? I've told you that we didn't know.
I don't tell lies. You're insulting me...."

She was so passionate that Mrs. Payne was almost convinced. She softened
for a moment. "After all, you _ought_ to have known," she said. "You're
a married woman."

"Married ..." Gabrielle repeated. "Yes ... but I didn't know. I've
told you I didn't. That's enough."

"Well, if you didn't know, I _did_," said Mrs. Payne with a laugh.

"How? Tell me how?"

"It wasn't difficult to see."

"I can't imagine it. But I know nothing of love. Only once..." and
Gabrielle relapsed into her dream, standing with her hand on the bedpost
gazing towards the window. After a second she turned again quickly.
"Then, if you knew, was that why you invited me here?"

Mrs. Payne said: "Yes----"

"Why didn't you tell me instead of doing that?"

"I wanted to make certain."

"Why didn't you tell my husband?"

"For your sake. I wanted to save you."

"No, you didn't... You weren't thinking of me. You were thinking of
Arthur."

This was perfectly true, but Mrs. Payne had not gone through hell to
discuss fine points of that kind. She had left her room in very much the
same frame of mind as she would have adopted in approaching the dismissal
of a servant. She had expected to be met with passionate denials, had
prepared herself, indeed, for a stormy "scene"; instead of which
Gabrielle appeared to be curious rather than disturbed about her
discovery, and a great deal more interested in the psychological than in
the practical aspects of the case. If she had offered any violent
opposition to Mrs. Payne, Mrs. Payne could have given her violence in
r