upon her neck. When he had finished she clapped her
hands as though she had won a bet. After this they began to whisper to
each other, at least he whispered and she smiled and shook her head.
Finally, she seemed to give way, for she unfastened the flower which
she wore in the breast of her dress, and presented to him. Godfrey
started at the sight which caused him to take his fingers from his ears
and clutch the bush. A dry twig broke with a loud crack.

"What's that?" said Isobel.

"Don't know," answered Lord Charles. "What a funny girl you are, always
seeing and hearing things. A stray cat, I expect; London squares are
full of them. Now I have won my lady's favour and she must fasten it to
my helm after the ancient fashion."

"Can't," said Isobel. "There are no pins in Plantagenet dresses."

"Then I must do it for myself. Kiss it first, that was the rule, you
know."

"Very well," said Isobel. "We must keep up the game, and there are
worse things to kiss than roses."

He held the flower to her and she bent forward to touch it with her
lips. Suddenly he did the same, and their lips came very close together
on either side of the rose.

This was too much for Godfrey. He glided forward, as the stray cat
might have done, of which the fine knight had spoken, meaning to
interrupt them.

Then he remembered suddenly that he had no right to interfere; that it
was no affair of his with whom Isobel chose to kiss roses in a garden,
and that he was doing a mean thing in spying upon her. So he halted
behind another bush, but not without noise. His handsome young face was
thrust forward, and on it were written grief, surprise and shame. The
moonlight caught it, but nothing else of him. Isobel looked up and saw.

He knew that she had seen and turning, slipped away into the darkness
back to the gate. As he went he heard the knight called Lord Charles,
exclaim:

"What's the matter with you?" and Isobel answer, "Nothing. I have seen
a ghost, that's all. It's this horrible dress!"

He glanced back and saw her rise, snatch the rose from the knight's
hand, throw it down and stamp upon it. Then he saw and heard no more
for he was through the gate and running down the square. At its end, as
he turned into some street, he was surprised to hear a gruff voice
calling to him to stop. On looking up he saw that it came from his
enemy, the hansom-cab man, who was apparently keeping a lookout on the
square from his lofty perch.

"Hi! y