r, and never by so
much as a word or look indicated the slightest suspicion of her interest
in Curlew's Nest and its affairs. With Phyllis his manner was somewhat
different, and during the last two days their relations had seemed
occasionally rather strained, but there was no open break, in public at
least.

"But at home it's another matter!" Phyllis assured her. "Something's come
over him--I can't guess what. He will hardly speak either to Father or
myself. He doesn't even want to play his violin when we get together, and
usually he adores that. He's moody and silent and just--_grouchy_, most
of the time! And that's unusual for Ted. I'll give him credit for being a
pretty amiable fellow, as a rule. I can't make him out!"

"And it surely is queer that we've seen nothing more of Eileen, don't you
think so?" questioned Leslie.

"Well, no. Considering that she gained her point and got us away all that
afternoon, I don't think it at all queer. She's done with us now. Why
should she try to keep on with it? By the way, I called her up at Aunt
Sally's last night. She wasn't there, but Aunt Sally said her grandfather
has been rather worse for the last two days and she's been at the
hospital most of the time--was there then. All of which may or may not be
so. As a matter of fact, I guess Aunt Sally knows precious little of her
doings when she's away in that car."

Somehow, Leslie could never believe Eileen quite as full of duplicity as
Phyllis thought her. While she had to admit that circumstances made the
girl's conduct seem almost inexcusable, there always lingered in her mind
a stubborn feeling that perhaps there was more back of it all than they
know--that Eileen herself might be struggling with entangling problems.
And secretly she still felt a liking for the girl. But she knew it was
useless to express these doubts to Phyllis, so she wisely kept her own
counsel. But there was one thing she did allude to.

"Isn't it strange that Eileen never told us a word about her grandfather,
or how sick he was, or what was the matter with him? You would have
thought it natural, that day when she took us riding, to say _something_
about it, anyway. I hardly see now how she could have avoided it. And yet
she did. You'd never have thought she had such a thing as a sick
grandfather on her mind!"

"Leslie, you certainly are a trusting soul!" exclaimed Phyllis,
scornfully. "How do you know she _has_ a sick grandfather in any
hospital?