reath. A splinter of wood (the furniture was only imitation
Jacobean) had impaled the rag of chiffon, and almost tenderly
releasing it, Rolls folded the trophy away in a breast pocket.

His imagination had not tricked him. The stuff did smell of
fresias--which he proved by holding it to his lips for an instant--the
very scent that had come out to him whenever the dryad door opened, in
reality and memory, the scent he had grown intimate with while the
Moon dress hung in his wardrobe during those days when he had awaited
a chance to present his offering to Ena!

When Logan came back he turned to tell Sims at the door that he would
not be needed again, at any rate, for the present. Then he shut
himself and Peter into the rosy glow of the dining-room.

"At last!" he exclaimed, sinking contentedly into the chair opposite
Rolls. "I feel as if I'd earned a whole bottle of drink. But all's
well that ends well."

"It hasn't quite ended yet, has it?" remarked Peter. "No, thank you,
no champagne!"

"Not ended?" repeated Logan, bottle in hand. "Oh, I see what you're
at!" and he began filling his own glass, already emptied half a dozen
times during the visit of the detectives. "You mean you want an
explanation of this hanky panky. Well, I promised it to you, didn't I?
I said you must give me the benefit of the doubt till those chaps were
out of the house. I hope you have. But I thought once or twice you
looked a bit thick, as if you weren't sure what I'd let you in for.
But I'm not the kind of chap to get a pal in a fix to save my own
face. I'm going to explain, all right. Only first I want to thank you
again for---"

"You needn't," said Peter.

"Sure you won't change your mind and take a little fizz? We've been
through some hot work for this weather."

"_You_ have. No--not any!"

"One go at mine, then, and I'm yours. A-ah! that was pretty good.
Well--there _was_ a girl, of course. But she came because she wanted
to come. Then the trouble began. There was a little misunderstanding
about a pearl dog collar she admired in a jeweller's window. She
seemed disappointed to find that this wasn't to be the occasion of a
presentation. Said I'd promised. I hadn't! I never do promise
beforehand to give girls things. Girls would love to have the same
effect on your money the sun has on ice. Not that this one's like all
the others. She's worth a little expenditure. A real stunner! Any
fellow'd be wild over her. An English girl, tall