weird or eerie, she was in the main a bright, well-educated, sensible,
winsome, lawn-tennis-playing English girl. Her vivacious spirits rose
superior to her surroundings, which were often sad enough. But she
was above all things wholesome, unaffected, and sparkling--a gleam of
sunshine. She laid no claim to supernatural powers; she held no dealings
with familiar spirits; she was simply a girl of strong personal charm,
endowed with an astounding memory and a rare measure of feminine
intuition. Her memory, she told me, she shared with her father and all
her father's family; they were famous for their prodigious faculty in
that respect. Her impulsive temperament and quick instincts, on the
other hand, descended to her, she thought, from her mother and her Welsh
ancestry.

Externally, she seemed thus at first sight little more than the ordinary
pretty, light-hearted English girl, with a taste for field sports
(especially riding), and a native love of the country. But at times
one caught in the brightened colour of her lustrous brown eyes certain
curious undercurrents of depth, of reserve, and of a questioning
wistfulness which made you suspect the presence of profounder elements
in her nature. From the earliest moment of our acquaintance, indeed,
I can say with truth that Hilda Wade interested me immensely. I felt
drawn. Her face had that strange quality of compelling attention for
which we have as yet no English name, but which everybody recognises.
You could not ignore her. She stood out. She was the sort of girl one
was constrained to notice.

It was Le Geyts first luncheon-party since his second marriage.
Big-bearded, genial, he beamed round on us jubilant. He was proud of his
wife and proud of his recent Q.C.-ship. The new Mrs. Le Geyt sat at the
head of the table, handsome, capable, self-possessed; a vivid, vigorous
woman and a model hostess. Though still quite young, she was large and
commanding. Everybody was impressed by her. "Such a good mother to
those poor motherless children!" all the ladies declared in a chorus of
applause. And, indeed, she had the face of a splendid manager.

I said as much in an undertone over the ices to Miss Wade, who sat
beside me--though I ought not to have discussed them at their own table.
"Hugo Le Geyt seems to have made an excellent choice," I murmured.
"Maisie and Ettie will be lucky, indeed, to be taken care of by such a
competent stepmother. Don't you think so?"

My witch gl