othing to
you."

He shook his head impatiently and came to a stand on the road.

"You're going back? Good-by, Lord Tristram."

"I'm not called that till after the funeral," he told her, looking as
suspicious as he had in the earliest days of their acquaintance.

"And will you let me go on living at Merrion--or coming every summer
anyhow?"

"Do you think of coming again?"

"I want to," she answered with some nervousness in her manner.

"And Major Duplay?" He smiled slightly.

"I don't know whether he would want. Should you object?"

"Oh, no," said Harry, again with the weary indifference that seemed to
have fastened on him now.

"I've been gossiping," she said, "with Mrs Trumbler and Miss
Swinkerton."

"Good Lord!"

"Miss Swinkerton says your engagement to Janie will be announced
directly after the funeral."

"And Major Duplay says that directly it's announced----!"

"You don't mean to tell me anything about it?"

"Really, I don't see why I should. Well, if you like--I want to marry
her."

Mina had really known this well for a long while, yet she did not like
to hear it. She had been spinning fancies about the man; what he had in
his mind for himself was very prosaic. At least it seemed so to
her--though she would have appreciated the dramatic side of it, had he
told her of his idea of living with the big check by him.

"I can't help thinking that somehow you'll do something more exciting
than that."

"She won't marry me?" He was not looking at her, and he spoke rather
absently.

"I don't suppose she'll refuse you, but--no, I've just a feeling. I
can't explain."

"A feeling? What feeling?" He was irritable, but his attention was
caught again.

"That something more's waiting for you."

"That it's my business to go on affording you amusement perhaps?"

Mina glanced at him; he was smiling; he had become good-tempered.

"Oh, I don't expect you to do it for that reason, but if you do it----"

"Do what?" he asked, laughing outright.

"I don't know. But if you do, I shall be there to see--looking so hard
at you, Mr Tristram." She paused, and then added, "I should like Cecily
Gainsborough to come into it too."

"Confound Cecily Gainsborough! Good-by," said Harry.

He left with her two main impressions; the first was that he had not the
least love for the girl whom he meant to marry; the second that he
hardly cared to deny to her that he hated Cecily Gainsborough because
she was the owner of