very sorry your brother is not well,' she said in rather a forced
voice, as she flecked a little dust off the legs. 'Mollie, I think
Caroline has forgotten to dust the piano this morning. Will you hand me
that feather-brush, please? I want you to try this duet with me; it is
such a pretty one!' And after that Mollie's fingers were kept so hard at
work that she found no more opportunity for talking about Cyril.

Another time, as Audrey looked over her French exercise, she heard a
deep sigh, and glancing up from the book, found Mollie gazing at her
with round sorrowful eyes.

'Well, what now?' she asked a little sharply.

'Oh, I am so sorry, Miss Ross!' returned Mollie, faltering and turning
red; 'I am so dreadfully sorry, Miss Ross, that Cyril has offended you.
I thought you were such good friends, but now----' She stopped, somewhat
abashed at Audrey's displeased expression.

'My dear Mollie, I have never been really vexed with you before; but you
will annoy me excessively if you talk such nonsense. I am not in the
least offended with your brother--whatever made you say such a
thing?--and we are perfectly good friends.'

Audrey spoke with much dignity as she took up her pen again.

Poor Mollie looked very much frightened.

'Oh dear, Miss Ross,' she said penitently, 'you are not really cross
with me, are you? It was not my own idea; only mamma said last night
that she was sure you were offended about something, for you never come
to see us now, and your manner was so different when she spoke to you
after chapel on Sunday; and then she said perhaps Cyril had offended
you.'

'I tell you it is all nonsense, Mollie!'

'Yes, but I am sure there is something,' returned Mollie, half crying,
for Audrey had never been impatient with her before. 'Cyril will never
let me talk to him about you; he gets up and leaves the room when mamma
begins wondering why you never come. Cyril was quite cross when she
asked him to give you a message the other day. "It is more in Mollie's
line," he said; "I never can remember messages," and he walked away, and
mamma cried, and said she could not think what had happened to him--that
he had never been cross with her in his life before; but that now she
hardly dared open her lips to him, he took her up so.'

Audrey sighed wearily, then she gave Mollie a comforting little pat.

'Mollie, dear,' she said kindly, 'I did not mean to be cross with you;
but you do say such things, you know, and re