scared, but--let me confess it--the
moment was not without a fearful joy! My heart was beating with quick,
excited throbs. It was the oddest, most inexplicable thing, but I--I
really wanted to see him. If a wish could have spirited him away, I
could not have brought myself to breathe it. It seemed suddenly as if,
unknown to myself, I had missed him, been missing him for a long, long
time--

The door opened and he came in.

CHAPTER NINETEEN.

A DOUBLE EXCITEMENT.

He wore a dark suit, and carried a silk hat in his hand. The
conventional dress made a great difference in his appearance; it always
does when one is accustomed to see a man in the easy, becoming garb of
the country. He looked older, more imposing; in the dim light it seemed
to me that he was thinner too, had lost some of his deep tan.

I rose from my chair and bowed. He bowed too, and said:--

"Miss Harding, I believe?"

Long might he believe it! I waved him to a chair, and said suavely,
"Pray sit down."

"I--er--I called to ask if you would be kind enough to give me Miss
Wastneys' address. I believe her letters are sent to this address."

"May I ask who gave you that information?"

"I'm sorry; but I'm not at liberty to say. It was a discovery which has
given me considerable difficulty to make."

"Excuse me, Mr--er--" I stopped short with an admirable air of inquiry.

"My name is Maplestone."

"Thank you! I presume, Mr Maplestone, that you are aware of Miss
Wastneys' wish to keep her address private for the moment. Do you
consider yourself justified in acting in direct opposition to her
wishes?"

"I do," he said sturdily. "I warned her that I would do everything in
my power to find her. I am only sorry that I have been so long in doing
it."

"I am afraid she would not share your regret. In any case, I cannot
take the responsibility of helping you any further."

"You refuse to tell me where to find her?"

"I am sorry to appear discourteous, Mr Maplestone, but I have no
choice."

He looked at me, a cool, casual glance, and impatiently frowned. There
was no flicker of recognition in his look. To him I was obviously a
mere figure-head, an obstinate, elderly woman who stood as an obstacle
in his path. He hesitated for a moment, and then said emphatically:--

"My business is imperative. It is absolutely necessary to see Miss
Wastneys."

"I think she must decide this point."

"Madam!"--he glared at me reproachfully-