Lady Frances and Read now left the room, and Audrey and Evelyn were alone. Audrey uttered a sigh.
“What is the matter, Audrey?” asked her cousin.
“I am thinking of the day after to-morrow,” answered Audrey. “The unhappy girl who has kept her secret all this time will be openly denounced. It will be terribly exciting.”
“You do not pretend that you pity her!” said Evelyn in a voice of scorn.
“Indeed I do pity her.”
“What nonsense! That is not at all your way.”
“Why should you say that? It is my way. I pity all people who have done wrong most terribly.”
“Then have you ever pitied me since I came to England?”
“Oh yes, Evelyn—oh, indeed I have!”
“Please keep your pity to yourself; I don’t want it.”