The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1900-10-03
CHAPTER XI.

When came down before dinner
found Ralph and Charles talking earnest
ly by the hall fire. Ralph's hand on his
brothers shoulder.
You see we are no further forward
than we were" he was saying.
I'VE shall have Marston back tomor-
row." said Charles, as the gong began TO
sound I'VE cannot take any step TIL
then, especially If we don't want 10 put
our foot I'm II. l have been racking my
brains all the afternoon without the YES
tige of result. We must just hoid our
hands for the moment.
. Dinner was announced. and We waited
patiently for a few minutes and impa-
tiently for "A good many more, until EV-
eiyn hurried down, apologizing TOT oe-
ing late and with "A message from Lazy
Mary that We were not to wait Tor her.
as she was dining upstairs In her own
room, a practice to which she seemed
rather addicted.
And where is Aurelia?" asked Ralph.
she is not coming down TO dinner
either." said Evelyn. she has n bad
headache again. and is lying down. She
asked me TO tell you that she wishes par
ticularly 10 see you this evening, as she
Is going away tomorrow. and II she Is
well enough she will come down 10 the
morning room at 8: indeed she said she
would come down anyhow.
After Ralphs natural anxiety respect
ing his lady love had ben relieved. and
he had been repeatedly assured that
nothing much was amiss, we went In TO
dinner, and a more lugubrious repast /
never remember being present -at.=The
meals OF the day might have been clas-
sined thus: Breakfast, dismal. luE-
cheon. dismaller Cor more dismaD; din
ner. dismallest Cor most dismaD. There
really was no conversation. Even l,who.
without going very deep (Which i con-
slider is not in good taste), have some
thing to say on almost every subject
even | felt myself nonplused for the time
being. Each of us in turn got out Few
constrained words and then relapsed into
silence.
Evelyn ate nothing, and her hand trem-
bled SO much when she poured out a
glass OF water that she split some on the
cloth / saw Charles was watching her
furtively. and ! became more and more
certain that Aurelia was right and that
Evelyn knew something aboht the mys-
terry OF the night before. i must and
would speak 10 her that very evening.
bitterly cold" said Ralph, when at
last we had reached tho dessert stage.
"It Is showing still. and the wind is get
ting up
In truth the wind was moaning round
the house like an uneasy spirit
THAT sound I'm the wind always means
snow" said Charles evidently for the
sake OF saying something ut is saster-
w. I should think. Yes" after pause,
when another silence seemed imminent.
there goes the o'clock train. II must
be- quite a quarter OF an hour late.
though. for II has struck some time.
can hear IL distinctly. The station Is
three miles away, and you never hear the
train unless the Wild is I'm the easi'
Come. Charles. not three mles--two
miles and half" put I'm Ralph.
"Well, two and a half from here down
10 the station. but certainly three from
the station up here" replied Charles
and so silence was laboriously avoided by
dllgent and small talk. until we returned
20 the drawing room, thankful there at
least We could take MP book and be ST
lent II we wished. We all did wish ~. ap-
pnrently Evelyn was sitting by n lamp
when we came in with book before her.
her elbow on the table, shading her face
with n slender. delicate hand She re-
mained motionless. her eyes fixed upon
the page. but I noticed after some time
that she had never turned II over Charles
NAV have read his newspaper. but N he
did N was with one eye upon Evelyn all
the time Between watching them both |
did not. as may be imagined. make much