“Caleb Trench wounded two last night,� said the colonel. He had the air of a man in a dream.
“They won’t die,� replied Kitty, cold-bloodedly, “and it’s a good thing to stop these lynchers. Wasn’t Mr. Trench grand? I’m dying to go and see him and tell him how I admired the account of him facing the mob. What does Di think?�
“She hasn’t said,� replied the colonel, suddenly remembering that Diana’s silence was unusual. He looked apprehensively toward the rose garden and saw the flutter of a white dress through an opening in the box hedge. “Kitty,� he added abruptly, “you go over there and see Diana and ask her yourself.�
“While Mr. Eaton’s there?� Kitty giggled. “I couldn’t, Colonel Royall; he’d hate me.�
The colonel looked reflectively at the young girl sitting in the big chair opposite. She was very pretty and her smile was charming. “I don’t think he’d hate you, my dear,� he remarked dryly, “and I know Diana wants to see you.�
Kitty hesitated. “I don’t like to interrupt,� she demurred.
“You won’t,� said the colonel, a little viciously.
Kitty rose and descended the steps to the lawn, nothing loath; then she stopped and looked over her shoulder. “Mr. Trench will be tried immediately,� she said; “the Grand Jury indicted him this morning.�
The colonel’s frown of perplexity deepened. “I call it indecent haste,� he said.
“Grandpa is to defend him,� said Kitty, “and we’re proud of him. I think Caleb Trench is a real hero, Colonel Royall.�