"Perhaps not," replied Crane. "And by the way, did I tell you that the miniature had turned up all right?"
Tucker's face fell. He had depended a good deal on the loss of the miniature as a lever to oust the whole set of servants.
"No," he said. "Where was it discovered?"
"Oh, it had just been moved," answered Crane. "It was lying on another table, when I happened to notice it." He took it out of his pocket and looked at it. "I think now, I'll keep it in my room for safety. You approve of that, don't you, Tuck?"
Tucker, who felt that in some way he was being deceived, would not answer, and in the pause Mrs. Falkener rose and said chattily,
"Well, shall we be off?"
"Coming with us, Solon?"
"No, I'm not," returned Tucker crossly.
"Didn't mean to offend you," Crane answered. "I thought you liked kitchens, too."
Downstairs, they found the kitchen empty. Jane-Ellen was standing just outside the door watching Willoughby, who was exciting himself most unnecessarily over preparations which he was making to catch a bird that was hopping about in the grass near by. The great cat crouched, all still except the end of his tail, which twitched ominously, then he rose, and, balancing himself almost imperceptibly on his four paws, seemed about to spring; then abandoning this method, too, he crept a little nearer to his victim, his stomach almost touching the earth. And then the whole exhibition was ended by the bird, who, having accomplished its foraging expedition, lightly flew away, leaving Willoughby looking as foolish as a cat ever does look.