Avice with triumph, producing a quaint string of Italian beads.

"Good business," said Wilfred with an appreciative grin. "Did she catch
you?"

"Not she--I can tell you I didn't wait long, 'cause she always comes
upstairs as quick as lightning. She did come, too, in an awful hurry,
and locked up the room--I only got out of the way just in time. And
every minute she could, yesterday, she was up there."

"Well, I don't see much in that."

"No, but look here, I got another chance of looking into her room this
morning, and that trunk was gone!"

"Gone back to the box-room," said Wilfred with superiority.

"No, it wasn't--I went up and looked. And her other trunk's not there,
either."

"Oh, you're dreaming! I bet she'd just pushed it under her bed."

"Pooh!" said Avice. "That great big trunk wouldn't go under her bed--you
know she's only got a little stretcher-bed. And I tell you they'd both
gone. I bet you anything she's going to run away."

"Where'd she run to?"

"Oh, somewhere with Bob."

"Well, let her go."

"Yes, and Mater 'd have to spend ever so much on a new governess; and
most likely she'd be a worse beast than Cecilia. And no governess we
ever had did half the things Mater makes Cecilia do to help in the
house. Why she's like an extra servant, as well as a governess. Mater
told me all about it. I tell you what, Wilfred, it's our business to see
she doesn't run away."

"All right," said Wilfred, "I suppose we'd better watch out. When do you
reckon she'd go? People generally run away at night, don't they?"

"Well, anyone can see she's just taking advantage of Mater being away.
Yes, of course she'd go at night. She might have sent her boxes away
yesterday by a carrier--I bet that horrid little Eliza would help her.
Ten to one she means to sneak out to-night--she knows Mater will be home
to-morrow."

"What a sell it will be for her if we catch her!" said Wilfred with
glee. "I say, what about telling Pater?"

Avice looked sour.

"I did tell him something yesterday, and he only growled at me. At
least, I said, 'Do you think Cecilia would ever be likely to run away?'
And he just stared at me, and then he said, 'Not your business if she
does.' So I'm not going to speak to him again."

"Well, we'd better take it in turns to watch her," Wilfred said. "After
dark's the most likely time, I suppose, but we'd better be on the
look-out all the time. Where's she now, by the way?"

"Why, I don't know. I say