“Henri!” she called.
He came in.
“Here’s a portrait of your wife.”
“Lovely!” he exclaimed. “That’s awfully good! Thanks very much.”
“Glad you like it. My husband and my handmaid are satisfied, at any rate. My son thinks me a bundle of vanity.... Oh, how glad I am to be back!... Here’s the ball-dress. We’ll put it away to-morrow. I shall never wear the thing again. A dress that cost six hundred francs for one wearing. Now we’ll be old again and economical.”
They all laughed, including Truitje.
“Oh, how glad I am to be back!... My own room, my own cupboards.... Truitje, what did you give your masters to eat?”
“Well, just what you used to, ma’am!...”
“So it was all right? I wasn’t missed?...”
“Oh, but you mustn’t go away for so long again, ma’am!” said Truitje, in alarm.