"Come now," he said, "we'll have our first lesson."
"Without the books?"
"Yes. We'll try breathing."
"Breathing?"
"Yes—from the diaphragm."
And as she looked bewildered, "From the stomach—not from the chest—breathe deeply and say 'Ah.'"
She obeyed him and did it naturally, as though she had never breathed in any other way.
"Fine," he cried and touched a note on the piano. "Now sing it. Throw it forward. Softly first, then louder——"
It was while she was carrying out this instruction that a shadow appeared on the doorsill, followed in a moment by the figure of Shad Wells. Beth's "Ah" ceased suddenly. The visitor stood outside, his hands on his hips, in silent rage.
Peter merely glanced at him over his shoulder.