Needles glared
upon them from the gloom, their pointed summits rising like shadowy
phantom figures against the sky. It became necessary to go below to
an eight-o'clock meal of nondescript kind, and Elfride was immensely
relieved at finding no sign of Mrs. Jethway there. They again ascended,
and remained above till Mrs. Snewson staggered up to them with the
message that Mrs. Swancourt thought it was time for Elfride to come
below. Knight accompanied her down, and returned again to pass a little
more time on deck.

Elfride partly undressed herself and lay down, and soon became
unconscious, though her sleep was light. How long she had lain, she knew
not, when by slow degrees she became cognizant of a whispering in her
ear.

'You are well on with him, I can see. Well, provoke me now, but my day
will come, you will find.' That seemed to be the utterance, or words to
that effect.

Elfride became broad awake and terrified. She knew the words, if real,
could be only those of one person, and that person the widow Jethway.

The lamp had gone out and the place was in darkness. In the next berth
she could hear her stepmother breathing heavily, further on Snewson
breathing more heavily still. These were the only other legitimate
occupants of the cabin, and Mrs. Jethway must have stealthily come in by
some means and retreated again, or else she had entered an empty berth
next Snewson's. The fear that this was the case increased Elfride's
perturbation, till it assumed the dimensions of a certainty, for how
could a stranger from the other end of the ship possibly contrive to get
in? Could it have been a dream?

Elfride raised herself higher and looked out of the window. There was
the sea, floundering and rushing against the ship's side just by her
head, and thence stretching away, dim and moaning, into an expanse of
indistinctness; and far beyond all this two placid lights like rayless
stars. Now almost fearing to turn her face inwards again, lest Mrs.
Jethway should appear at her elbow, Elfride meditated upon whether to
call Snewson to keep her company. 'Four bells' sounded, and she heard
voices, which gave her a little courage. It was not worth while to call
Snewson.

At any rate Elfride could not stay there panting longer, at the risk of
being again disturbed by that dreadful whispering. So wrapping herself
up hurriedly she emerged into the passage, and by the aid of a faint
light burning at the entrance to the saloon found