"She has gone out, Mr. Sherwood, and she left word that she would not be back till tea-time," and she glanced at the foreign-looking gentleman who made himself so very much at home.
"Very well, that will do," and Jarvis left the room.
"You see how it is, Hugh; she has run out on purpose to get clear of you."
"But that is no sign that I need despair," and there was a happier look in his eyes than there had been since he heard she was lost to him.
"Ask me to stay, Mr. Sherwood, for I cannot go away till I see her. I must learn the truth from herself before I leave the house," and the well-remembered impetuosity of old was visible in his words.
"Certainly, Hugh; stay, of course, but I fear you will not find your refusal as pleasantly spoken as if you had taken it at second-hand," and a feeble smile parted his lips for a moment. "But you know Dexie's ways, Hugh, so you must abide the consequences."
"I have borne much for love of her, and I am still willing to suffer if I may be rewarded in the end by seeing her once again," he answered earnestly. "A sight of her face would have been more welcome than an angel's visit during these long, weary months; to look back on them is like looking into desolation," he added, in a low, serious tone.
There was silence in the room for some moments. Hugh sat listening for the first footfall that would announce Dexie's approach, while Mr. Sherwood lay back, with closed eyes, thinking what an easy solution of the trouble it would be if Hugh would turn to Gussie for the gift that Dexie denied him. Then, rousing himself, he talked to Hugh of his travels and adventures on sea and land.
Meanwhile Dexie had rushed in haste to the house of her friend, and from thence despatched a note that brought Guy Traverse to her side, and her agitation and alarm were so great that Guy was almost unable to soothe her.
"I cannot go home without you, Guy. There can be only one thing brought him here, and I cannot face him unless you are with me."