“Is he still in the house?” she whispered.
“Not he.”
“Are you certain?”
“Perfectly; with all his rant, he dares not stay: it would be a police-office affair. He's gone long ago.”
“Thank God!” she said, with a shudder.
Their agitated talk continued for some time longer. At last, darkly and suddenly, as usual, he took his leave.
When her brother had gone, she touched the bell for Louisa Diaper. A stranger appeared.
The stranger had a great deal of pink ribbon in her cap, she looked shrewd enough, and with a pair of rather good eyes; she looked curiously and steadily on the young lady.
“Who are you?” said Alice, sitting up. “I rang for my maid, Louisa Diaper.”
“Please, my lady,” she answers, with a short curtsey, “she went into town to fetch some things here from Sir Richard's house.”