the whole of her mind to any earthly
thing that she had to do?"

"Never mind the women! What subject in common could you and Mr. Delamayn
possibly have to talk about? And why do I see a wrinkle between your
eyebrows, now you have done with him?--a wrinkle which certainly wasn't
there before you had that private conference together?"

Before answering, Sir Patrick considered whether he should take Blanche
into his confidence or not. The attempt to identify Geoffrey's unnamed
"lady," which he was determined to make, would lead him to Craig Fernie,
and would no doubt end in obliging him to address himself to Anne.
Blanche's intimate knowledge of her friend might unquestionably be made
useful to him under these circumstances; and Blanche's discretion was
to be trusted in any matter in which Miss Silvester's interests were
concerned. On the other hand, caution was imperatively necessary, in
the present imperfect state of his information--and caution, in Sir
Patrick's mind, carried the day. He decided to wait and see what came
first of his investigation at the inn.

"Mr. Delamayn consulted me on a dry point of law, in which a friend of
his was interested," said Sir Patrick. "You have wasted your curiosity,
my dear, on a subject totally unworthy of a lady's notice."

Blanche's penetration was not to be deceived on such easy terms as
these. "Why not say at once that you won't tell me?" she rejoined.
"_You_ shutting yourself up with Mr. Delamayn to talk law! _You_ looking
absent and anxious about it afterward! I am a very unhappy girl!" said
Blanche, with a little, bitter sigh. "There is something in me that
seems to repel the people I love. Not a word in confidence can I get
from Anne. And not a word in confidence can I get from you. And I do so
long to sympathize! It's very hard. I think I shall go to Arnold."

Sir Patrick took his niece's hand.

"Stop a minute, Blanche. About Miss Silvester? Have you heard from her
to-day?"

"No. I am more unhappy about her than words can say."

"Suppose somebody went to Craig Fernie and tried to find out the cause
of Miss Silvester's silence? Would you believe that somebody sympathized
with you then?"

Blanche's face flushed brightly with pleasure and surprise. She raised
Sir Patrick's hand gratefully to her lips.

"Oh!" she exclaimed. "You don't mean that _you_ would do that?"

"I am certainly the last person who ought to do it--seeing that you went
to the inn in flat rebellio