She gave him a keen glance, rose at once from her knees, and followed him from the room.
"Mademoiselle," continued Harry eagerly, "have you any red ribbon, silk, stuff, anything, in the house?"
"Perhaps. Why do you ask?"
"Will you find all that you can, and with your maids sew red bands round the collars and cuffs of the men?"
"To make them look like soldiers—is that what you mean?"
"Yes," replied Harry, delighted that she seized his meaning so quickly.
"I will do so at once. Send the men to the hall."
Harry next called up old Jean, and bade him fetch the gardener. When the man appeared, Harry asked him to gather as many sticks as he could, by preference wood with the bark on, about five feet in length, and stack them at the back door. A few minutes afterwards a message reached him from Sherebiah that the wagons had arrived. He ran upstairs and, regardless of ceremony, called out: "Mademoiselle de Vaudrey!"
Adèle came out of a room, holding a strip of red ribbon.
"Mademoiselle," said Harry, "I must go to the gate. Will you make every unarmed man look as much like a soldier as possible, and see that each is provided with one of the sticks that the gardener is now collecting?"