"But this, in effect, is ridiculous!" the Prince said at last. "Who should desire your death, my dear Carter?"
"Ah, that's the question!" said Wally mysteriously, "Of course, I wouldn't know! Oh no!"
Hugh, who was frankly enjoying the scene, removed his pipe from his mouth to remark softly to Mary: "I call this grand value. What's eating your impossible relative?"
"Oh, Hugh, isn't he dreadful?" said Mary, in rather despairing accents. "I don't want to sound like Vicky, but things do seem to be getting a bit tense. I suppose he did move from his stand?"
"Can't say: I wasn't near enough to see. Steel and this superb Prince of yours say he did, and they ought to know. Why no Vicky?"
"She went off with Alan White. You'll see her tonight." "You sound a little below yourself," remarked Hugh. "What's gone wrong?"
"Nothing, really. Nerves, perhaps. Vicky's been talking about bottled passions and things, and I've caught the infection."
"Good Lord! She must be a pretty good menace," said Hugh, partly amused and partly scornful.
Ermyntrude, meanwhile, had been subjecting the rest of' the party to a searching cross-examination. Wally's near escape put his misdemeanours temporarily out of her mind. She exclaimed a great deal over the misadventure, hut disgusted Wally finally by giving it as her opinion that it had been all his own fault. He became very sarcastic over the affair, and Ermyntrude, who like most persons of limited education, was instantly antagonised by sarcasm, immediately recalled her discovery of Percy Baker's letter, and let fall some hints on her own account, which were broad enough to make Wally feel seriously alarmed, and the rest of the party extremely uncomfortable. Even Hugh, who was not ordinarily sensitive to atmosphere, suffered from an impression of sitting precariously on the edge of a volcano. The antagonism between Steel and Wally had never been more apparent; while behind the Prince's invincible smile lurked an expression hard to read, but oddly disquieting. The shooting lunch, to Hugh's growing comprehension, developed into a duel, not between Wally and his wife's admirers, but between those two men alone, Steel grimly possessive, the Prince flaunting his exotic charm, half in provocation of his rival, half too dazzle Ermyntrude.
Suddenly Hugh realised that Wally was outside this scene, thrust into the negligible background. Neither Steel nor the Prince had a look or a thought to spare for him; it was as though they considered him contemptible, or non-existent. Hugh had a lively sense of humour, but this situation, though verging upon farce, failed to amuse him. He felt uncomfortable, and recalled Mary's mention of bottled passions with a grimace of distaste. Nasty emotions about, he reflected, and let it go at that.