Madame Ursule was waiting for me, on the gallery with fluted pillars at the front of the house.
"M's'r Williams, where is Madeleine?"
Her anxiety vibrated through the darkness.
"Isn't she here, madame?"
"She has not been seen to-day."
We stood in silence, then began to speak together.
"But, madame—"
"M's'r Williams—"
"I went away early—"
"When I heard from the Pawnees that you had gone off on horseback so early I thought it possible you might have taken her with you."