e
felt that any withdrawal on his part would, to a woman of her class, be
nothing less than a flaming insult. Had she not classed herself with his
nigger servant, an unreformed savage? Had she not shown her preference
for him at the festival of his home-coming? Had she not . . . Lady
Arabella was cold-blooded, and she was prepared to go through all that
might be necessary of indifference, and even insult, to become chatelaine
of Castra Regis. In the meantime, she would show no hurry--she must
wait. She might, in an unostentatious way, come to him again. She knew
him now, and could make a keen guess at his desires with regard to Lilla
Watford. With that secret in her possession, she could bring pressure to
bear on Caswall which would make it no easy matter for him to evade her.
The great difficulty was how to get near him. He was shut up within his
Castle, and guarded by a defence of convention which she could not pass
without danger of ill repute to herself. Over this question she thought
and thought for days and nights. At last she decided that the only way
would be to go to him openly at Castra Regis. Her rank and position
would make such a thing possible, if carefully done. She could explain
matters afterwards if necessary. Then when they were alone, she would
use her arts and her experience to make him commit himself. After all,
he was only a man, with a man's dislike of difficult or awkward
situations. She felt quite sufficient confidence in her own womanhood to
carry her through any difficulty which might arise.

From Diana's Grove she heard each day the luncheon-gong from Castra Regis
sound, and knew the hour when the servants would be in the back of the
house. She would enter the house at that hour, and, pretending that she
could not make anyone hear her, would seek him in his own rooms. The
tower was, she knew, away from all the usual sounds of the house, and
moreover she knew that the servants had strict orders not to interrupt
him when he was in the turret chamber. She had found out, partly by the
aid of an opera-glass and partly by judicious questioning, that several
times lately a heavy chest had been carried to and from his room, and
that it rested in the room each night. She was, therefore, confident
that he had some important work on hand which would keep him busy for
long spells.

Meanwhile, another member of the household at Castra Regis had schemes
which he thought were working to