“I believe it, Mr. Norris,” replied Laura, shuddering. “I once saw Mrs. Calverley myself in the dressing-room, in the exact posture you describe her, with a little phial in her hand, containing eau de luce, she said, but I am now sure it was poison. I shall never forget the look she gave me. Depend upon it, Clarissa has seen her spirit.”
“May be so,” observed Norris.
“The poor thing can't rest, and I don't wonder at it,” observed Laura. “I suppose these rooms will be shut up, Mr. Norris?”
“Nobody has slept there since the poor lady's death,” he replied; “but I can't say about shutting up the rooms.”
“I wouldn't sleep there for the world,” remarked Laura. “Indeed, after this occurrence, I don't think I shall ever venture into the dressing-room again. I should always expect to find her there.”
Just then a bell was rung, and Norris instantly prepared to answer the summons.
“My young master wants to see me before he sets out for Brackley,” he said. “Stay where you are for a few minutes. I may have something to tell you.”
When Norris reappeared, he had a very joyful expression of countenance.
“I can tell you something you don't know, Laura,” he said—“something about Lady Thicknesse.”
“I know what it is. The wedding-day is fixed.”