rry? What had happened lately
to the world? It seemed to have lost all proper respect for the Trojan
position. He could not understand it. Clare drew her breath sharply.
Her fears thronged about her, like shadows in the firelight--what was
it? ... Was it Harry?

"What about, Robin? Is anything the matter?"

"Why, no--nothing really--it's only--that is--Oh, dash it all--it's
awfully difficult."

There was another silence. The ticking of the clock drove Robin into
further speech.

"Well--I've made a bit of a mess. I've been rather a fool and I want
your advice."

Another pause, but no assistance save a cold "Well?" from Garrett.

"You see it was at Cambridge, last summer. I was an awful fool, I
know, but I really didn't know how far it was going until--well, until
afterwards----"

"Until--after what?" said Garrett. "Would you mind being a little
clearer, Robin?"

"Well, it was a girl." Robin stopped. It sounded so horrible, spoken
like that in cold blood. He did not dare to look at his aunt, but he
wondered what her face was like. He pulled desperately at his tie, and
hurried on. "Nothing very bad, you know. I meant, at first, anyhow--I
met her at another man's--Grant of Clare--quite a good chap, and he
gave a picnic--canaders and things up the river. We had a jolly
afternoon and she seemed awfully nice and--her mother wasn't there.
Then--after that--I saw a lot of her. Every one does at Cambridge--I
mean see girls and all that kind of thing--and I didn't think anything
of it--and she really _seemed_ awfully nice then. There isn't much to
do at Cambridge, except that sort of thing--really. Then, after term,
I came down here, and I began to write. I'm afraid I was a bit silly,
but I didn't know it then, and I used to write her letters pretty
often, and she answered them. And--well, you know the sort of thing,
Uncle Garrett--I thought I loved her----"

At this climax, Robin came to a pause, and hoped that they would help
him, but they said no word until, at last, Garrett said impatiently,
"Go on."

"Well," continued Robin desperately, "that's really all--" knowing,
however, that he had not yet arrived at the point of the story.
"She--and her mother--came down to live here--and then, somehow, I
didn't like her quite so much. It seemed different down here, and her
mother was horrid. I began to see it differently, and at last, one
night, I told her so. Of course, I thought, naturally, tha