"My goodness gracious!" The stern eyes hardened. "Where—where on earth did you obtain such a thing? Why—why——"
Columbine's features flinched. She was a poor relation, of course, so the look in the older woman's eyes and the implication of the words formed little less than an insult.
Quietly she put one hand to her throat and removed the collar, dropping it into the hand of Mrs. Maillard. It was a thing to make any woman's eyes widen—a collar of exquisitely wrought gold studded with ten great blazing star sapphires. Beside it the diamonds that bejewelled Mrs. Maillard's ample front looked cold and lifeless.
"That?" queried Lucie, innocently, producing a scrap of chamois and dabbing at her nose. "Oh, that's very interesting! It was made for Queen Hortense—so was this scarf that keeps my ragged hair from lopping out!"
"You didn't buy them, certainly!" demanded Mrs. Maillard.
"Of course not. They were a present—only this morning."
"Girl!" The lady's voice was harsh. "A present? From whom, if you please?"
"Oh, I promised not to tell; he's a particular friend of mine. Aren't the stones pretty?"
Mrs. Maillard was speechless. She compressed her firm lips and watched Lucie replace the sapphire collar without a word to offer. Silently she extended a corsage bouquet from the pile beside her; then, in a trembling voice, forced herself to explain about the favour inside.
"And I hope," she added, "that before receiving any more such valuable presents you'll consult me. Of course, if you don't wish to tell about this, you needn't; but a word of advice will often save a girl from making very serious mistakes."