‘Well, my lady, Johnson, he has just come up from the stables to say that the Black Prince—his lordship’s horse, you know, my lady—ran into the yard a few minutes back, without—without his lordship, my lady!’
‘Thrown!’ exclaimed Lady Laura shrilly.
‘Without Lord Ilfracombe?’ queried Lady Blanche; ‘but where, then, is Mr Portland?’
‘Oh, heavens, my poor son! He may be lying dead in the road at this moment,’ said the dowager, wringing her hands.
But Nora said nothing. She was standing in the centre of the room, motionless as though turned to stone. Presently she asked in a harsh voice,—
‘Have they sent out to search along the roads?’
‘No, my lady, they thought—’ commenced Warrender.
‘Thought? Thought? What is the good of thinking when they should act? Tell Johnson to go out at once and scour the road to the Castle, and let the carriage be got ready to follow him. His lordship may be unable to walk. Go at once; don’t lose a moment. Stay, where is Johnson? I will give him the directions myself.’
She flew down to the lower premises as she spoke, regardless that her dress was quite unsuited to cold corridors and stone passages. She was very white, but perfectly calm and collected as she gave her orders, whilst Lady Laura was shrieking in hysterics in the drawing-room, and Lady Blanche had her hands full in trying to prevent the dowager fainting under the dreadful suspense. As soon as Nora was satisfied that assistance had been dispatched in case of need, she went slowly up to her own room, with her hand tightly pressed against her heart. She could not realise what might be taking place, or might have taken place. She had only one fear, one dread, Ilfracombe and she might be parted before she had had time to tell him that she loved him. She kept both hands and teeth clenched to prevent her crying out, and making her cowardice patent to all around, whilst her cold lips went on murmuring, ‘Oh, God, save him! oh, God, save him!’ without any idea of the meaning of what she said.
She had stood thus, not having the heart or the sense to sit down, for perhaps half an hour, when she heard a shout from the hall—a shout of laughter, and then her husband’s voice exclaiming,—