"Oh, so you met the car!" she said; "it belongs to some grand folks living on Clifton Down, friends of Lady Margaret Browning's."
"The friends she's staying with?" inquired Bob.
Lizzie nodded. "The chauffeur brought a note for Mrs. Winter, and said he was to wait," the explained, "I took the note up to her and waited while she read it. It put her in a bit of a fluster. She told me Lady Margaret Browning wanted her to spend the day with her and bring Stray with her, and the car had been sent to fetch them. So she's gone, and Stray too—looking just as though he'd been used to ride in a car all his life! Now, you may depend something will come of this. Missus will soon be losing her attic lodger, I expect."
"Why should you think that?" asked Bob quickly.
"Never you mind!" replied Lizzie, mysteriously. "If I'm right we all ought to be glad, so don't you begin to pull a long face. Mrs. Winter's been very poor, but I'm beginning to hope she's seen her poorest days. We shall see!"
When the boys met their aunt at dinner they found that she, too, expected to lose her attic lodger before long.
"I shall be sorry when she goes," she remarked, "for she's paid her rent regularly and been kind to you boys. A real good woman she is, and I wish her well."
The shop was closed, and Jackie was in bed and asleep that night before Mrs. Winter and Stray came home. They returned in the motor brougham, and were met by Mrs. Mead in the passage.
"Come into the kitchen and have a warm by the fire before you go upstairs, Mrs. Winter," she said. "I hope you have spent a pleasant day."
"Yes, thank you," Mrs. Winter answered; "a very pleasant day."