oreshortened,
cleanly-modelled face, thought with half of her mind what a perfect
thing it was. Sudden aspects of Denis's beauty sometimes struck her
breathless, as they struck Peter.

"The Margerison family wants money, I understand," said Denis, who hadn't
been listening attentively.

"Very badly, Denis."

Denis nodded. "They always do, of course.... Well, is it our business to
fill the bottomless Margerison purse?"

Lucy sat very still, looking up at him with wide eyes.

"Our business? I don't know. But, of course, if Peter and Peter's people
want anything, we shall give it them."

"But I gather it's not Peter that asks? Peter never asks, does he?"

"No," said Lucy. "Peter never asks. Not even for Thomas."

"Well, I should be inclined to trust Peter rather than his charming
family. Peter's name seems to be dragged into that letter a good deal,
but it doesn't follow that Peter sanctioned it. I'm not going to annoy
Peter by sending him what he's never asked for. I should think probably
Peter knows they can get on all right as they are, and that this letter
must be taken with a good deal of salt. I expect the egregious Hilary
only wants the money for some new enterprise of his own, that will fail,
as usual. Anyhow, I really don't fancy having any further dealings with
Hilary Margerison or his wife; I've had enough there. He's the most
impossible cad and swindler."

"Swindlers all, swindlers all," said Lord Evelyn, getting up and pacing
up and down the room, his hands behind his back.

Lucy, after a moment, said simply, "I shall give them something, Denis.
I must. Don't you see? Whoever it was, I would. Because anyhow, they're
poor and we're rich, and they want things we can give them. It's so
obvious that when people ask one for things they must have them if one
can give them. And when it's Peter who's in want, and Peter's baby, and
Peter's people ..."

"You see," said Denis, "I doubt about Peter or the baby benefiting by
anything we give them. It will all go down the drain where Hilary
Margerison's money flows away. Give it to Peter or give it to his
relations, it'll come to the same thing. Peter gives them every
penny he gets, I don't doubt. You know what Peter is; he's as weak as
a baby in his step-brother's hands; he lets himself be dragged into the
most disgraceful transactions because he can't say no."

Lucy looked up at him, open-eyed, pale, quiet.

"You think of Peter like that?" she said, and he