mpion's sake
alone," she said.

He smiled at her with covert insolence. "You are a true woman," he said.

"Is that intended for a compliment or otherwise?" asked Violet.

"Otherwise, I think," said Olga, in a very low voice.

"Acquit me at least of idle flattery!" said Hunt-Goring, with a laugh.

CHAPTER XIX

THE REVELATION

It was certainly a perfect day for a cruise. The sea lay blue and still
as a lake, so clear that the rocks made purple shadows in its crystal
depths. Under any other circumstances, Olga would have revelled in the
beauty of it, but there was no enjoyment for her that day. She stood on
the deck of the yacht as she steamed away from the jetty, and watched
the uneven shore recede with a feeling of impotence that was not without
an element of fear. For it seemed to her that she was a prisoner,
looking her last upon the liberty of her youth.

The vessel was of no inconsiderable size and moved swiftly through the
still water, cleaving her way like a bird through space. It was not long
before they passed the jutting headland that hid the little
fishing-village from view; but Olga still stood motionless at the rail,
fighting down the cold dread at her heart.

She could hear Violet's voice on the other side of the deck, gaily
chattering to Hunt-Goring. The scent of their cigarettes reached her,
and she clenched her hands. She was sure now that he had been supplying
Violet with them secretly. She had been too deeply engrossed with her
own affairs to think of this before, and bitterly did she blame herself
for this absorption.

Poor Olga! It was the prelude to a life-long self-reproach.

They were heading out to sea now, running smoothly into the glaring
sunshine. It poured upon her mercilessly where she stood, but she was
scarcely aware of it. She gazed backward at the shore with eyes that saw
not.

Suddenly a soft voice spoke at her shoulder. "What! Still sulking? Do
you know you are remarkably like a boy?"

She turned with a great start, meeting the eyes she feared. "I don't
know what you mean," she said, drawing sharply back.

He laughed his smooth, easy laugh. "I mean that you are behaving like a
cub in need of chastisement. Do you seriously think I am going to put up
with it--from a chit like you?"

She looked him up and down with a single flashing glance of clear scorn.
"How much do you think I am going to put up with?" she said.

He leaned his arms upon the rail in an attitud