'Two days only.'
'Two days only,' he repeated with an air of relief. 'I was led to understand—that is to say, I understood you to have said—longer. You are there temporarily, I suppose?'
'No, sir, mother is going to be his housekeeper.'
'Oh!——' His countenance fell. He righted his hat on his head. 'Does your mother ever speak to you about your father who is dead?'
'He is not dead.'
'Indeed; he is not dead. You are sure of that?'
'Yes, sir. He is away somewhere at the other end of the world, I am told.'
'Then she speaks to you about him?'
'No, sir, never.'