ich hung against the wall opposite to me.

The house door was open, and as I crossed past it, I saw Count Fosco
and his wife standing talking together on the steps outside, with their
faces turned towards me.

The Countess came into the hall rather hastily, and asked if I had
leisure enough for five minutes' private conversation. Feeling a
little surprised by such an appeal from such a person, I put my letter
into the bag, and replied that I was quite at her disposal. She took my
arm with unaccustomed friendliness and familiarity, and instead of
leading me into an empty room, drew me out with her to the belt of turf
which surrounded the large fish-pond.

As we passed the Count on the steps he bowed and smiled, and then went
at once into the house, pushing the hall door to after him, but not
actually closing it.

The Countess walked me gently round the fish-pond. I expected to be
made the depositary of some extraordinary confidence, and I was
astonished to find that Madame Fosco's communication for my private ear
was nothing more than a polite assurance of her sympathy for me, after
what had happened in the library. Her husband had told her of all that
had passed, and of the insolent manner in which Sir Percival had spoken
to me. This information had so shocked and distressed her, on my
account and on Laura's, that she had made up her mind, if anything of
the sort happened again, to mark her sense of Sir Percival's outrageous
conduct by leaving the house. The Count had approved of her idea, and
she now hoped that I approved of it too.

I thought this a very strange proceeding on the part of such a
remarkably reserved woman as Madame Fosco, especially after the
interchange of sharp speeches which had passed between us during the
conversation in the boat-house on that very morning. However, it was
my plain duty to meet a polite and friendly advance on the part of one
of my elders with a polite and friendly reply. I answered the Countess
accordingly in her own tone, and then, thinking we had said all that
was necessary on either side, made an attempt to get back to the house.

But Madame Fosco seemed resolved not to part with me, and to my
unspeakable amazement, resolved also to talk. Hitherto the most silent
of women, she now persecuted me with fluent conventionalities on the
subject of married life, on the subject of Sir Percival and Laura, on
the subject of her own happiness, on the subject of the late Mr.