ze that he held her in special regard. Notwithstanding
that Miss Bishop called upon him at his own rooms at half-past nine
at night, when all young ladies who valued their reputations would be
either playing incompetent bridge in the suburban home, or going
respectably with relations to a harmless piece at the theatre, she
took the other fact well into consideration--gave it full weight--and
all in that brief moment of a pause, realized that as yet there was
no intimacy between these two.

She did not look upon women as a class--the class he mixed with--as
dangerous to her brother's ultimate salvation; but coming across the
individual in Sally, quiet, unobtrusive--the type that valued its
own possessions, and would certainly expect substantial settlement,
if not marriage itself--she felt called into action and answered the
call, as only such women with her training know how.

When she had shaken hands, she leant back again with one graceful
elbow, bared, upon the mantelpiece--the pose of absolute ease. Sally,
who, except for the students' balls, to which Janet had sometimes
taken her, had not been in the presence of people in evening dress
since she left home, stood, hiding her nervousness, but not hiding
the fact that it was concealed. Traill's heart warmed to her. He knew
his sister through and through--guessed every thought that was
taking shape in her mind. But Sally--even her presence there
alone--was more or less of an enigma and, seeing her almost pathetic
perturbation of manner, he paid all the attentions he roughly knew
to her.

"Here--you must sit down," he said easily. "We're not going to let
you rush away before you've come."

For that plural of the pronoun, Sally thanked him generously in her
heart; for that also, Mrs. Durlacher smiled inwardly and saw visions
of the power by which Jack would eventually win his way.

"Will you have some coffee?" he added, when she had accepted the chair
he proffered. "We've just had some. Good--wasn't it, Dolly?"

"Excellent."

"Will you have some?" he repeated.

"No, thank you--well--yes,--yes, I think I will."

Even to take coffee is action--action that it is an aid to conceal.

"Some milk?"

"No, thank you--black, please."

She trusted that he would not remember that she had taken it with
milk before. She always did take it with milk, but the eyes of that
woman by the mantelpiece were on her, and she knew well enough how
coffee ought to be taken.

All t