retreat, a sanctuary from the law, and the fastness had been ingeniously
secured against surprise by the peculiar position of the bedstead in
front of the doorway.

'Father is a donkey!' said Ethel.

'And ma never says a word!' said Milly.

'I could simply have smacked him when he brought in mother's birthday,'
Ethel continued, savagely.

'So could I.'

'Fancy him thinking it's you. What a lark!'

'Yes. I don't mind,' said Milly.

'You are a brick, Milly. And I didn't think you were, I didn't really.'

'What a horrid pig you are, Eth!' Milly protested, and Ethel laughed.

'Did you give Fred my note all right?' Ethel demanded.

'Yes,' answered Milly. 'I suppose he's coming up to-night?'

'I asked him to.'

'There'll be a frantic row one day. I'm sure there will,' Milly said
meditatively, after a pause.

'Oh! there's bound to be!' Ethel assented, and she added: 'Mother does
trust us. Have a choc?'

Milly said yes, and Ethel drew a box of bonbons from her pocket.

They seemed to contemplate with a fearful joy the probable exposure of
that life of flirtations and chocolate which ran its secret course side
by side with the other life of demure propriety acted out for the
benefit of the older generation. If these innocent and inexperienced
souls had been accused of leading a double life, they would have denied
the charge with genuine indignation. Nevertheless, driven by the
universal longing, and abetted by parental apathy and parental lack of
imagination, they did lead a double life. They chafed bitterly under the
code to which they were obliged ostensibly to submit. In their moods of
revolt, they honestly believed their parents to be dull and obstinate
creatures who had lost the appetite for romance and ecstasy and were
determined to mortify this appetite in others. They desired heaps of
money and the free, informal companionship of very young men. The
latter--at the cost of some intrigue and subterfuge--they contrived to
get. But money they could not get. Frequently they said to each other
with intense earnestness that they would do anything for money; and they
repeated passionately, 'anything.'

'Just look at that stuck-up thing!' said Milly laughing. They stood
together at the window, and Milly pointed her finger at Rose, who was
walking conscientiously to and fro across the garden in the gathering
dusk.

Ethel rapped on the pane, and the three sisters exchanged friendly
smiles.

'Rosie will nev