Deborah West, in her conscientious, but severe rectitude, turned to the
hall door and departed, her hands uplifted still. Lionel ordered Tynn to
attend Miss West home. He then procured some water for his wife and
carried it in, as he had previously carried in the wine.

A fruitless service. Sibylla rejected it. She wanted neither water nor
anything else, were all the thanks Lionel received, querulously spoken.
He laid the glass upon the table, and, sitting down by her side in all
patience, he set himself to the work of soothing her, gently and
lovingly as though she had been what she was showing herself--a wayward
child.

CHAPTER LXII.

TYNN PUMPED DRY.

Miss West and Tynn proceeded on their way. The side path was dirty, and
she chose the middle of the road, Tynn walking a step behind her.
Deborah was of an affable nature, Tynn a long-attached and valued
servant, and she chatted with him familiarly. Deborah, in her simple
good heart, could not have been brought to understand why she should not
chat with him. Because he was a servant and she a lady, she thought
there was only the more reason why she should, that the man might not be
unpleasantly reminded of the social distinction between them.

She pressed down, so far as she could, the heavy affliction that was
weighing upon her mind. She spoke of the weather, the harvest, of Mrs.
Bitterworth's recent dangerous attack, of other trifling topics patent
at the moment to Deerham. Tynn chatted in his turn, never losing his
respect of words and manner; a servant worth anything never does. Thus
they progressed towards the village, utterly unconscious that a pair of
eager eyes were following, and an evil tongue was casting anathemas
towards them.

The owner of the eyes and tongue was wanting to hold a few words of
private colloquy with Tynn. Could Tynn have seen right round the corner
of the pillar of the outer gate when he went out, he would have detected
the man waiting there in ambush. It was Giles Roy. Roy was aware that
Tynn sometimes attended departing visitors to the outer gate. Roy had
come up, hoping that he might so attend them on this night. Tynn did
appear, with Miss West, and Roy began to hug himself that fortune had so
far favoured him; but when he saw that Tynn departed with the lady,
instead of only standing politely to watch her off, Roy growled out
vengeance against the unconscious offenders.

"He's a-going to see her home belike," snarled Roy