Iris came slowly forward.
"Miss Ramsay says that you do not eat and do not sleep. If that is the case, I must send for the doctor to see you," continued Aunt Jane.
"Yes, Aunt Jane," answered Iris.
She hung her head listlessly. Mrs. Dolman put her arm round the slender waist and drew the child close to her side. Iris submitted to this embrace without in any way returning it.
"And when you see the doctor he will, of course, order you a tonic, and perhaps tell us to take you to the seaside. If that is the case, we must do so, Iris—we must do our duty by you, whatever happens. It would never do for you to be ill, you understand."
"Yes, Aunt Jane," answered Iris; "that's what I think myself—it would never do."
"Then you will try to get well, dear? You will do exactly what the doctor says?"
"Yes, Aunt Jane."
Mrs. Dolman looked earnestly into her little niece's face.
"You know," she said, in a brisk voice, "I am, for my part, quite certain that we shall get tidings of the lost children either to-day or to-morrow. We are not leaving a stone unturned to get them back."