When Regina left the sitting-room she followed the housemaid up two flights of steps, and into a small but beautifully furnished apartment, where a fire was not really necessary, as the house was heated by a furnace, still the absence of the cheerful red light she had left below made this room seem chill and uninviting.
The trunks had been brought up, and after lowering the curtain of the window that looked down on the beautiful Avenue, Hattie said:
"Will you have tea, coffee, or chocolate?"
"Neither, I thank you."
"Have you had any breakfast?"
"I do not want any."
"It is no trouble, miss, to get what you like."
Regina only shook her head, and proceeded to take off her hat and wrappings.
"Are you an orphan?" queried Hattie, her heart warming toward a stranger who avoided giving trouble.
"No; but my mother is in——is too far for me to go to her."