was "damaged goods"--she was unfit to marry George
Ellesborough. But she would marry him! She set her teeth--clinging to him
with all the energy of a woman's deepening and maturing consciousness.
She had been a weak and self-willed child when she married Delane--when
she spent those half miserable, half wild days and nights with Dick
Tanner. Now she trusted a good man--now she looked up and adored. Her
weakness was safe in the care of George Ellesborough's strength. Well,
then, let her fight for her love.

Presently Janet knocked at the door. The singing downstairs had ceased.

"Are you tired, Rachel? Can't I help you?"

"Just a bit tired. I'm resting. I'll be down directly."

* * * * *

But the interruption had started fresh anxieties in her mind. She had
paid the most perfunctory attention to the few words Janet had said about
Dempsey's call at the farm, two nights before. She understood at the time
that he had come to chatter about the murder, and was very glad that she
had been out of the way.

But now--what was it that he had said to Janet--and why had Janet said so
little about his visit?

Instead of resting she walked incessantly up and down. This uncertainty
about Janet teased her; but after all it was nothing to that other
mystery--how did Roger know?--and to the strange and bewildering effect
of the juxtaposition of the two men--their successive appearance in the
darkness within--what?--ten minutes?--a quarter of an hour?--while the
cloud was on her own brain--without apparently any connection between
them--and relevance to each other. There must have been some connection!
And yet there had been no sign of any personal knowledge of Roger Delane
in Dempsey's talk; and no reference whatever to Dempsey in Delane's.

She went down to supper, very flushed and on edge. Little Jenny eyed her
surreptitiously. For the first time the child's raw innocence was
disturbed or jealous. What did John Dempsey want with calling on Miss
Henderson--and why had he made a rather teasing mystery of it to her,
Jenny? "Wouldn't you like to know, Miss Inquisitive?" Yes, Jenny would
like to know. Of course Miss Henderson was engaged to Captain
Ellesborough, and all that. But that was no reason why she should carry
off Jenny's "friend," as well as her own. Jenny's heart swelled within
her as she watched Miss Henderson from the other end of the table. Yes,
of course, she was nice-looking, and her clo