She stopped suddenly, her hands writhing together.

Mrs. Lorton stared at the counterpane with a half-sly, half-speculative expression in her faded eyes.

"After all," she said meditatively, "it was not such a particularly good match. One knows nothing about him or his people, and--and I suppose you've not felt quite satisfied. Yes, perhaps you might do better. You may have some chances now. You've read the letter, and made up your mind, of course?"

"The letter?" echoed Nell stupidly.

Mrs. Lorton stared at her angrily, and with a flush of resentment on her peevish face.

"The letter I gave you last night, of course," she said. "Do you mean to tell me that you haven't read it? The most important letter I have ever received! At least, it is of the greatest importance to you. It is from my cousin, Lord Wolfer. What have you done with it, Eleanor?"

Nell put her hand to her head.

"I must have left it in my room," she said. "I will go and fetch it."

Mrs. Lorton snorted.

"Such gross carelessness and indifference is really shameful!" she flung after Nell.

Nell found the letter beside the bed, and returned with it to Mrs.

Lorton's room.

"Why, it's all crumpled up, as if you had been playing shuttlec.o.c.k with it!" exclaimed Mrs. Lorton indignantly. "It is absolutely disrespectful of you, not to say ungrateful. Read it, if you please, and slowly; I could not bear to have my cousin's letter gabbled over. I, at least, know what is due to a Wolfer."

It was a moment or two before Nell's burning eyes could accomplish the task of deciphering the lines of handwriting which seemed to have been formed by a paralytic spider that had fallen into the ink and scrambled spasmodically across the paper. There was no need to tell her to read slowly, and she stumbled over every other word of the letter, which ran thus:

"MY DEAR SOPHIA: You will doubtless be surprised at hearing from me, and, indeed, I should not have written, for, as you are aware, my time is fully occupied with public affairs, and I rarely write private letters; but I have promised Lady Wolfer to communicate with you directly, as, for obvious reasons, which you will presently see, she does not desire my secretary to know of the proposal which I am about to make you; as, in the event of your declining the proposition, there would be no need for the fact of its having been made to become the common knowledge of my household and the servants' hall. As you are doubtless aware, by reading the public prints, Lady Wolfer takes a great interest and a prominent part in the movement which is being made toward the amelioration of the position of woman; indeed, I may say, with pardonable pride, that she is one of the great leaders in this social revolution, which, we trust, will place woman upon the throne from which man has. .h.i.therto thrust her.

"This being so, Lady Wolfer's time is, as you will readily understand, much absorbed; so completely, indeed, that she is unable to pay any attention to those smaller and meaner; household cares to which women less highly gifted very properly devote so much of their time. Having no daughter of our own, it occurred to us that it might, perhaps, be a beneficial arrangement for your stepdaughter, Miss Lorton, if she would come to us and render Lady Wolfer such a.s.sistance as is afforded by the ordinary housekeeper. You will say: Why not engage a duly qualified person for the post? I reply: We have done so, and do not find the ordinary person, though apparently duly qualified, satisfactory. Lady Wolfer is of an extremely sensitive and delicate organization, and it is absolutely necessary that the person with whom she would be brought in daily contact should be young and docile.

"I have referred to the photograph of Miss Lorton which you were good enough to send me some months ago, and you will be pleased to hear that Lady Wolfer approves of the young lady's personal appearance. I take it for granted--you, her guardian, being a Wolfer--that she has been properly trained; and if she should be willing to come to us on what is termed a month's trial, we shall be very pleased to receive her. She may come at any moment, and without any notice beyond a mere telegram. I will not speak of the advantages accruing from such a position as that which she would hold, for I am quite sure you will be duly sensible of them, and will point them out to her.

"I trust that you are in good health, and with best wishes for your prosperity and happiness,

"I remain, dear Sophia, yours very truly,

"WOLFER.

"P. S.--I omitted to say that I should be pleased to pay Miss Lorton an honorarium of fifty guineas per annum."

At another time Nell would have found it difficult to refrain from laughing at the stilted phraseology of the letter, at the pomposity with which the proposal was made, and the meanness which strove to hide itself in a postscript; but a Punch and Judy show would have seemed a funereal performance at that moment, and she stared as blankly at the letter when she had finished it as if she had been reading some language which had no meaning for her.

Mrs. Lorton emitted a cough of self-satisfaction.

"It is extremely kind and thoughtful of my Cousin Wolfer," she said; "and I must say that I think you are an extremely fortunate girl, Eleanor, to have had such an offer made you. Of course, if you had been still engaged to Mr. Vernon, you would have been obliged to have sent a refusal to Lord Wolfer; but, as it is, I presume you will not hesitate for a moment, but will jump at such an opportunity."

Nell looked before her blankly, and remained silent.

"It will be a chance such as few girls of your position ever meet with; for, of course, when my cousin speaks of a housekeeper, he does not wish us to infer that you would be expected to take the position of a menial.

No; he will not forget that though you are not my daughter, I married your father, and that you are, therefore, connected with the family. Of course, you will go into society, you will meet the elite and the creme de la creme, and will, therefore, enjoy advantages similar to those which I enjoyed, but which I, alas! threw away. Really, when one comes to consider it, this breach of your engagement with this Mr. Vernon is quite providential, as it removes the only obstacle to your accepting my cousin's n.o.ble offer."

Nell woke with a start when the stream of self-complacent comment had ceased, and realized that she was being asked to decide. What should she do? To leave Shorne Mills, to go into the world among strangers, to enter a big house as a poor relation--she shrank from the prospect for a moment, then she nerved herself to face it. After all, she could never be happy at Shorne Mills again. Every tree, every rock, every human being would remind her of Drake, of the lover she had lost. With d.i.c.k gone, there would be nothing for her to do, nothing to distract her mind from the perpetual brooding over the few past weeks of happiness, and the long, gray life before her. With these people there would be sure to be some work for her, something that would save her from spending every hour in futile regret and hopeless longing.

"Well, Eleanor?" demanded Mrs. Lorton impatiently.

"I have made up my mind; I will go," said Nell.

Mrs. Lorton flushed eagerly.

"Of course you will," she said. "It would be wicked and ungrateful to neglect such a chance. When will you go? Fortunately, you have some new clothes, and you will get what else you want in London. There are one or two things I should like you to get for me. You could pick them up at some of the sales; they are all on now, and things are sold ridiculously cheap. And, Eleanor, be sure and send me a full description of Lady Wolfer's dresses. You might snip off a pattern, perhaps. And I shall want to hear all about the people who go to the house, and the dinner parties and entertainments. I should say that it is not at all unlikely that Lady Wolfer may ask me to go and stay there. Of course, she will be curious to know what I am like--have I mentioned that we have never met?--and you will tell her that I--I--have been accustomed to the society in which she moves; and you might say that you are sure the change will do me good. Write often, and be sure and tell me about the dresses."

"But I shall leave you all alone, mamma," said Eleanor. "Are you sure you won't be lonely?"

Mrs. Lorton drew a long sigh, and a.s.sumed the air of a martyr.

"You know me too well to think that I should allow my selfish comfort to stand in the way of your advancement, Eleanor. Of course, I shall miss you. But do not think of that. Let us think only of your welfare. I shall have Molly, and must be content."

Nell checked a sigh at the evident affectation of the profession. It was not in Mrs. Lorton to miss any human being so long as her own small comforts were a.s.sured.

"Then I think I will go at once--to-night," said Nell. "Why should I not? They want me--some one--at once, and----"

"Certainly," a.s.sented Mrs. Lorton eagerly. "I should go at once. You will write immediately, and tell me what the house is like, and the dresses."

Nell went downstairs, feeling rather confused and bewildered by the sudden change in her life. She was to have been Drake's wife; she was now to be--what was it, companion, housekeeper?--to Lady Wolfer!

d.i.c.k met her at the bottom of the stairs.

"I can't find Drake," he said, of course, with an injured air. "They say he left the cottage early this morning--they thought he was coming up here, as usual; but he hasn't been, has he?"

Nell shook her head.

"See, d.i.c.k, I've some news for you," she said. "I am going to London."

She gave him the letter to read, and he read it, with a running commentary of indignant and scoffing exclamations.

"Of all the pompous, stuck-up letters, it's the worst I ever imagined!

And you say you're going? Oh, but look here! What will Drake say?"

Nell turned away.

"I don't think he will object," she said, almost inaudibly.

d.i.c.k stared at her.

"Look here, young party, what is up between you two? Is there anything wrong? Oh, dash it! don't look as if I'd said there was a ghost behind you! What is it?"

"Drake--Drake and I are not going to be married," she said, trying to smile, but breaking down in the attempt. "We--we have agreed--to--to part!"