rs, of course, must choose for
themselves, but I should not feel happy to do anything else myself."

Denys's eyes lighted up.

"I am so glad," she said, "that is just what I wished."

"Mother told me about the donkey," pursued Charlie. "Poor mother, it
quite put her about! So I told her I should hire a nice little wicker
bath chair and I should push her, and we would all go to the Landslip
this afternoon and have a nice walk together. Only we'll start at two,
while the sunshine lasts, and we can get Cecil and one or two more to
join us."

"That will be lovely!" said Denys, "and I will see that poor Mrs. Lyon
and little Harry. Oh, I wish I had bought some grapes yesterday. I
absolutely forgot that the shops would be shut."

"Oh! I'll get you some," said Charlie. "I know the back door of a
greengrocer's shop, and I'll go and thump till he opens it."

They were in excellent time for breakfast, and so was Gertrude; but
Denys found the meeting of her offended friends was to be an agony
long drawn out, for Mrs. Henchman had sent down word that she should
breakfast in bed, and that Charlie might wait upon her. Audrey was
already seated behind the teapot with an aggressive little air which
seemed to say, "Behold the daughter of the house," but with Charlie's
eyes upon her she greeted Denys at least civilly, and she and Gertrude
appeared to be on the best of terms.

By-and-by Cecil Greyburne turned up, and Denys left the three deep in
discussion over the morning's plans, and went to get ready for church,
calling in on Mrs. Henchman on her way upstairs.

She found her dressed on her sofa, with Charlie in an arm-chair on the
opposite side of the fire; she stayed a minute or two with them and
went on to her room, feeling glad that the first meeting with Mrs.
Henchman was over and nothing had been said. Oh, if she could only
know that nothing more _would_ be said! Then she could try and go
on cheerfully and endeavour to forget that anything disagreeable had
happened.

She and Charlie found All Saints' far more crowded than they had
anticipated, the result being, that as they waited with many others in
the aisle, Denys found herself put into a row where there was but one
seat, and she could only look helplessly on while Charlie was marched
by the verger, who knew him but did not know Denys, right up to the
front.

Yet, after the first moment of chagrin, Denys felt a vague relief in
being alone. Alone, in a crowd, with no