itifulness--as if she were sorry.

"My poor child," she said. "Whatsoever he tells you don't be frightened.
Don't think you are without friends. I will take care of you."

"Thank you," she said. "I don't think anything would frighten me.
Nothing seems frightening--now." After which she went into the room
where Dr. Redcliff was waiting for her.

* * * * *

The Duchess sat alone and thought deeply. What she thought of chiefly
was the Head of the House of Coombe. She had always known that more than
probably his attitude towards a circumstance of this sort would not even
remotely approach in likeness that of other people. His point of view
would detach itself from ordinary theories of moralities and
immoralities. He would see with singular clearness all sides of the
incident. He would not be indignant, or annoyed or embarrassed. He had
had an interest in Robin as a creature representing peculiar loveliness
and undefended potentialities. Sometimes she had felt that this had even
verged on a tenderness of which he was himself remotely, if at all,
conscious. Concerning the boy Donal she had realised that he felt
something stronger and deeper than any words of his own had at any time
expressed. He had believed fine things of him and had watched him
silently. He had wished he had been his own flesh and blood. Perhaps he
had always felt a longing for a son who might have been his companion as
well as his successor. Who knew whether a thwarted paternal instinct
might not now be giving him such thinking to do as he might have done if
Donal Muir had been the son of his body--dead on the battlefield but
leaving behind him something to be gravely considered? What would a man
think--what would a man _do_ under such circumstances?

"One might imagine what some men would do--but it would depend entirely
upon the type," she thought. "What he will do will be different. It
might seem cold; it might be merely judicial--but it might be
surprising."

She was quite haunted by the haggard look of his face as he had
exclaimed:

"I wish to God I had known him better! I wish to God I had talked to him
more!"

What he had done this morning was to go to Mersham Wood to see Mrs.
Bennett. There were things it might be possible to learn by amiable and
carefully considered expression of interest in her loss and loneliness.
Concerning such things as she did not already know she would learn
nothing from his conversa