"Must you go?" said Hilda, clinging to her. "Well, it is good of you to come. Give my love to Gladys, and tell her she must not be hard on herself."
"Thank you. She and mother are going to London on Thursday to spend a few weeks. I trust the change will do them both good, for mother needs it as much as Gladys. She sleeps so badly, and is losing her appetite. I want her to consult a physician, but she declares that a doctor can do her no good."
"No doubt the change will set her up. So you will be alone; I am selfishly glad, for I hope to see the more of you."
"Auntie will be with me a great deal, but of course I shall often be at Woodham. Indeed, I cannot keep away now; I am always thinking of Kitty."
Miss Lorraine was pleased to stay at Wyndham with Aldyth whilst her mother was away. She was not a frequent visitor there at other times. She could chat more freely with her niece in her own home. She had never felt much affection for Mrs. Stanton, and often found her patience and tolerance severely tried when in her company. It vexed her to see how completely Mrs. Stanton made herself mistress of her daughter's house. Her tastes, her wishes ruled everything. The servants instinctively appealed to her on every matter; Aldyth's reign was merely nominal.
"I would not stand it, if I were Aldyth," Miss Lorraine would say to herself, perfectly aware, however, that this state of things was exactly what Aldyth desired. She never dreamed of maintaining her rights in opposition to her mother; the home was for her mother, and her pleasure, her comfort should be the chief consideration; she was ready to defer to her wishes in every possible way. But if a question of duty were involved, Aldyth could hold her own. When her mother denounced Aldyth's scheme for establishing a country home for factory girls as "Quixotic in the extreme, and an absurd waste of money," her words had surprisingly little effect.
"I am sorry you think it absurd, mamma," Aldyth said, calmly; "but I mean to try how the plan will work. I could not feel at ease in possessing so much if I made no effort to share my good things with some of my less fortunate sisters."
"I think you have managed to share them pretty considerably already," said Gladys, who was present. "I do not believe your old uncle would have left you Wyndham if he could have foreseen that we should all come and live here. Certainly you inherited it by rather a fluke, for Guy says he is sure that Mr. Lorraine meant to make another will."
"It is very bad taste of Guy to name such a thing to you. I wonder you let him!" cried Mrs. Stanton, with sudden passion in her voice.
"Oh, there was no harm in it," said Gladys, carelessly.