her had left them some money when he went
away; and Hilary could only send Louise to explain how he must formally
appear in the legal proceedings; he allowed Louise to put whatever
warmth of color she wished into his regrets and into his advice that
they should consult a lawyer. It was not business-like; if it were
generally known it might be criticised; but in the last resort, with a
thing like that, Hilary felt that he could always tell his critics to go
to the deuce, and fall back upon a good conscience.

It seemed to Louise, at first, that Suzette was unwilling to separate
her father from his office, or fully to appreciate his forbearance. She
treated her own father's course as something above suspicion, as
something which he was driven to by enemies, whom he would soon have
returned to put to confusion, if he had lived. It made no difference to
her and Adeline what was done; their father was safe, now, and some day
his name would be cleared. Adeline added that they were in the home
where he had left them; it was their house, and no one could take it
from them.

Louise compassionately assented to everything. She thought Suzette might
have been a little more cordial in the way she received her father's
regrets. But she remembered that Suzette was always undemonstrative, and
she did not blame her, after her first disappointment. She could see the
sort of neglect that was already falling upon the house, the expression
in housekeeping terms of the despair that was in their minds. The
sisters did not cry, but Louise cried a good deal in pity for their
forlornness, and at last her tears softened them into something like
compassion for themselves. They had her stay to lunch rather against her
will, but she thought she had better stay. The lunch was so badly cooked
and so meagre that Louise fancied they were beginning to starve
themselves, and wanted to cry into her tea-cup. The woman who waited
wore such dismal black, and went about with her eyes staring and her
mouth tightly pursed, and smelt faintly of horses. It was Mrs. Newton;
she had let Louise in when she came, and she was the only servant whom
the girl saw.

Suzette said nothing about their plans for the future, and Louise did
not like to ask her. She felt as if she was received under a flag of
truce, and that there could be no confidence between them. Both of the
sisters seemed to stand on the defensive with her; but when she started
to come away, Suzette put o