s place!

She sprang to her feet, ready to act upon a sudden thought. If she were
not needed at the house, she would go up to the sheds; perhaps she could
walk off the restlessness that kept urging her to action. At any rate,
she could find comfort in thinking of his presence there during the day;
she would be for a time, at least, in his environment. She knew Jim
McCann's section; she and Maggie had been there more than once to watch
the progress of some great work.

On the way up to the house she met Octavius.

"Where you going, Aileen?"

"Up to the house to see if I'm needed. If they don't want me, I'm going
up to the sheds for a walk. They say they look like cathedrals this
week, so many of the arches and pillars are ready to be shipped."

"There's no need of your going up to the house. Mis' Champney ain't so
well, and the nurse says she give orders for no one to come nigh
her--for she's sent for Father Honore."

"Father Honore! What can she want of him?" she asked in genuine
surprise. "He hasn't been here for over a year."

"Well, anyway, I've got my orders to fetch Father Honore, and I was just
asking Hannah where you were. I thought you might like to ride up with
me; I've harnessed up in the surrey."

"I won't drive way up, Tave; but I'd like you to put me down at the
sheds. Maggie says it's really beautiful now in Shed Number Two. While
I'm waiting for you, I can nose round all I want to and you can pick me
up there on your way back. Just wait till I run up to the house to see
the nurse myself, will you?" Octavius nodded.

She ran up the steps of the terrace, and on her return found Octavius
with the surrey at the front door.

Aileen was silent during the first part of the drive. This was unusual
when the two were together, and, after waiting a while, Octavius spoke:

"I'm wondering what she wants to see Father Honore for."

"I'd like to know myself."

"It's got into my head, and somehow I can't get it out, that it's
something to do with Champney--"

"Champney!--" the name slipped unawares through the red barrier of her
lips; she bit them in vexation at their betrayal of her thought--"you
mean Champney Googe?" She tried to speak indifferently.

"Who else should I mean?" Octavius answered shortly. Aileen's ways at
times, especially during these last few years when Champney Googe's name
happened to be mentioned in her presence, were irritating in the extreme
to the faithful factotum at Champ-au-H