lk to one
another. But in Vida's face--what had brought to it that still
intensity? Borrodaile moved so that he could follow the fixed look. One
of the infrequently passing hansoms had stopped. Was she looking at
that? Two laughing people leaning out, straining to catch what the mauve
orator was saying. Suddenly Borrodaile pulled his slack figure together.

'Sophia!' he ejaculated softly, 'and Stonor!--by the beard of the
prophet!' He half rose, whether more annoyed or amazed it would be hard
to tell. 'We're discovered!' he said, in a laughing whisper. As he
turned to add 'The murder's out,' he saw that Vida had quietly averted
her face. She was leaning her head on her hand, so that it masked her
features. Even if the woman who was speaking had not been the object of
such interest as the people in the hansom had to bestow, even had either
of them looked towards Vida's corner, only a hat and a gauze ruffle
would have been seen.

Borrodaile took the hint. His waning sense of the humour of the
situation revived.

'Perhaps, after all, if we lay low,' he said, smiling more broadly. 'It
would be nuts for Stonor to catch us sitting at the feet of Mrs.
Thomas.' He positively chuckled at the absurdity of the situation. He
had slipped back into his corner, but he couldn't help craning his neck
to watch those two leaning over the door of the hansom, while they
discussed some point with animation. Several times the man raised his
hand as if to give an order through the trap door. Each time Sophia
laughingly arrested him. 'He wants to go on,' reported Borrodaile,
sympathetically. 'She wants him to wait a minute. Now he's jumped out.
What's he--looking for another hansom? No--now _she's_ out. Bless me,
she's shaking hands with him. He's back in the hansom!--driving away.
Sophia's actually---- 'Pon my soul, I don't know what's come over the
women! I'm rather relieved on the whole.' He turned round and spoke
into Vida's ear. 'I've been a little sorry for Sophia. She's never had
the smallest interest in any man but that cousin of hers--and, of
course, it's quite hopeless.'

Vida sat perfectly motionless, back to the speaker, back to the
disappearing hansom, staring at the parapet.

'You can turn round now--quite safe. Sophia's out of range. Poor
Sophia!' After a little pause, 'Of course you know Stonor?'

'Why, of course.'

'Oh, well, my distinguished cousin used not to be so hard to get hold
of--not in the old days when we wer