or two they returned, and a little later Sir Ashley Mottisfont
came into his wife's room full of news.

'Well--would you think it, Philippa! After being so desperate, too,
about getting Dorothy to be with her!'

'Ah--what?'

'Our neighbour, the Countess, is going to be married again! It is to
somebody she has met in London.'

Lady Mottisfont was much surprised; she had never dreamt of such an
event. The conflict for the possession of Dorothy's person had obscured
the possibility of it; yet what more likely, the Countess being still
under thirty, and so good-looking?

'What is of still more interest to us, or to you,' continued her husband,
'is a kind offer she has made. She is willing that you should have
Dorothy back again. Seeing what a grief the loss of her has been to you,
she will try to do without her.'

'It is not for that; it is not to oblige me,' said Lady Mottisfont
quickly. 'One can see well enough what it is for!'

'Well, never mind; beggars mustn't be choosers. The reason or motive is
nothing to us, so that you obtain your desire.'

'I am not a beggar any longer,' said Lady Mottisfont, with proud mystery.

'What do you mean by that?'

Lady Mottisfont hesitated. However, it was only too plain that she did
not now jump at a restitution of one for whom some months before she had
been breaking her heart.

The explanation of this change of mood became apparent some little time
farther on. Lady Mottisfont, after five years of wedded life, was
expecting to become a mother, and the aspect of many things was greatly
altered in her view. Among the more important changes was that of no
longer feeling Dorothy to be absolutely indispensable to her existence.

Meanwhile, in view of her coming marriage, the Countess decided to
abandon the remainder of her term at Fernell Hall, and return to her
pretty little house in town. But she could not do this quite so quickly
as she had expected, and half a year or more elapsed before she finally
quitted the neighbourhood, the interval being passed in alternations
between the country and London. Prior to her last departure she had an
interview with Sir Ashley Mottisfont, and it occurred three days after
his wife had presented him with a son and heir.

'I wanted to speak to you,' said the Countess, looking him luminously in
the face, 'about the dear foundling I have adopted temporarily, and
thought to have adopted permanently. But my marriage makes it too