“No, we shall not, dearest! Mr Ravenscar will never bring himself to admit to the world that he was worsted by faro’s daughter! Whatever vengeance he takes, it will not be that. Only leave it to me!”
Lady Bellingham moaned.
“If you had not caught me coming up the stairs, you would never have known anything about it!” urged Miss Grantham. “There is nothing you can do, for I have the key of the cell; in my pocket, and I don’t mean to give it up. Forget it, Aunt Lizzie! Is Adrian here tonight?”
“What should that signify?” asked her ladyship bitterly. “You have treated him so roughly that the poor boy flies to Phoebe!”
“Well, that is just what I wanted him to do,” said Miss Grantham cheerfully. “Let us go upstairs!”
Her ladyship rose, and allowed herself to be escorted up to the saloons, but she was evidently much shaken, and felt quite unequal to taking her usual place at the faro-table, where sprinkling of people were already seated; but wandered about instead in a distracted way, pausing for a few minutes to watch the E.O. board, and drifting away again as though she did not know where to go next. Miss Grantham, concealing son inward qualms under a gay front, let it be seen that she was in spirits, and became the life and soul of a not very serious game of hazard, in the smaller saloon.
Chapter 12
At about nine o’clock, the rooms began to fill up. Sir James Filey arrived with several friends, to play faro, and he had no sooner greeted his hostess than he said: “You have not seen Ravenscar, have you, Lady Bel?”
Her ladyship gave a start, and faltered: “No, indeed, should I?”
Filey put up his glass, and surveyed the room. “Why, I he, that he was pledged to dine with Crewe, and some other; They waited for him until past eight, and then were obliged to sit down without him. I see he is not here.”