“I can’t help thinking of poor Ferdy, Phil. Have you heard from him since you left him at Aix?”
“No, but I should have heard if all had not been going well.”
“What is the matter with De Peyster?” asked Armstrong.
“Oh, you did not hear what Phil told me about him before dinner, Jack. He has been very ill, and Phil took him over to Aix for a cure.”
It was the first time De Peyster’s name had been mentioned since his abrupt departure, and Inez flushed deeply as she listened.
“What was the trouble, Emory?” asked Armstrong, innocently.
“He came pretty near having pneumonia,” replied Emory. “He was hard hit with a girl somewhere over here, and was thrown down, I suspect. Then he grew careless and was a pretty sick chap when I ran across him in Paris.”
Armstrong had no idea of the result of his question. He glanced hastily at Inez and gulped down half a glass of wine, nearly choking himself in the process.
“There you go!” exclaimed Uncle Peabody, quite understanding the situation and wishing to relieve the embarrassment. “You will drown yourself one of these fine days if you don’t listen to my teachings and profit by Mr. Emory’s example.”
But Emory was quite unconscious of the delicate ground upon which he trod. The days and nights he had spent with De Peyster were still strongly impressed upon his mind.