sure
she hasn't gone to sleep, for when I heard you call me, and tried to
slip my hand out of hers, she didn't seem to notice."

"She wouldn't," I said--to myself. "Where's Tibe?" I asked aloud.

"She's using him for a footstool."

All accounted for and under control! Yes; thrice wonderful little woman.

"We couldn't see anything of the race after all," went on Nell. "Did we
beat?"

"That's what I've come to talk to you about," I said, not knowing in the
least what I was going to say next. "It turned out," I went on slowly,
"that a man I--er--know, was on board the boat we were racing. We beat
it, but we didn't beat him; for he's walked on board since we've been
jammed by a couple of brutes on barges. Oh, no harm done--don't be
worried. The man is--in fact--Sir Alec MacNairne."

"Oh, the nice man we met at Amsterdam, and again at Leeuwarden, when
we--we--" She blushed at the recollection. "He's a distant relation
of----"

"Hush! Please don't speak her name or his loud enough for either to
hear," I whispered. "I can't explain all to you; but--will you trust
me?"

"Why, of course," said my lost Angel.

"Sir Alec MacNairne thinks his wife is on board, and he's very angry
with Brederode and me, because, you see, he and his wife have had a
quarrel," I vaguely explained. "He's got everything mixed up; and
because he's heard that a Lady MacNairne's on this boat, he's been
chasing us, full of fury. He's silly enough to believe that Brederode's
in love with his wife, and--I can't make you understand precisely why,
without giving away a secret of my _aunt's_--that nonsense of his is
likely to work _our_ Lady MacNairne a lot of harm."

"What a shame!" exclaimed sympathetic but puzzled Nell. "Can't anything
be done about it?"

"Something has been done," said I. "That's what I want you to forgive me
for, and--and help me to carry out, for Aunt Fay's sake. Poor Aunt Fay,
who's suffering with her heart at this minute! What will she have to
endure, if you don't stand by her!"

"I'll stand by her with all my might and main," said Nell. "What can I
do?"

"I'm breaking it to you--by degrees. The first degree is, I told Sir
Alec that Alb was--is--in love with you."

"Oh--how _could_ you?"

"It was fatally easy. And then I said you were engaged to him. That's
the second degree; and the third and last is, that I beg and implore you
to come on deck with me, and tell him it's true."

The girl had actually turned pale. "I