ances wrote
almost at once.'

Bessie shook her head.

'I never got the letter,' she said; 'but we have missed several, I am
afraid. We have been moving about so. Cannot you come to see us,
Jacinth? Mother, and father too, would love to see you. We are living a
little way out in the country at the village of St Remi; we have got a
dear little house there. Camilla and I came in for shopping this
morning. Couldn't you come back with us to luncheon? We could bring you
home this afternoon, and your maid would take back word to--to Lady
Myrtle Goodacre.'

'I am afraid I cannot,' said Jacinth, with some constraint in her voice.
'I never go out anywhere without asking Lady Myrtle's leave.'

'Of course not,' Camilla interposed. 'It would not do at all. You must
do as you think best, Miss Mildmay, about getting permission to come to
see us. I beg you to believe that, if you think it better not to ask
it,' she spoke in a lowered tone, so as to be unheard by Clayton, 'we
shall neither blame you nor misunderstand you. And now, perhaps, we had
best not keep you waiting longer.'

She held out her hand with the same quiet friendliness as appeared in
her words; not perhaps _quite_ without a touch of dignity almost
approaching to _hauteur_ in the pose of her pretty head as she gave the
unasked assurance. Jacinth thanked her--what else could she do?--feeling
curiously small. There was something refreshing in the parting hug
which Bessie bestowed upon her, ere they separated to follow their
respective roads, but Jacinth was very silent all the way home.

'Nice young ladies,' remarked Clayton. 'They are old friends of yours,
Miss Jacinth, no doubt?'

'The younger one was at school with my sister and me,' the girl replied,
for Clayton's position as a very old and valued servant removed all
flavour of freedom or presumingness from her observations. 'But I
scarcely know the older one.'

And for the rest of the way home she was unusually silent. Her mind was
hard at work. Jacinth was passing through a crisis. Should she tell Lady
Myrtle of the Harpers being in the near neighbourhood, or should she
not? There was no obligation upon her to do so; their name had not been
alluded to, even if Clayton should mention to her mistress the meeting
with the young ladies, nothing would be easier than for Jacinth to pass
it off with some light remark. And with the temptation to act this
negatively unfriendly part awoke again the sort of jealous ir