at seasonable hours," Mrs. Carew went
rambling on; "but I 'as always said and always will say, I don't hold
with such doings in my house."

"What doings?" Fanny expostulated. "For goodness, old Carew, do try and
make yourself more clear; who has been carrying on and how?"

"Miss Rutherford," Mrs. Carew announced. She was viewing Fanny with
unfriendly suspicion. "Only came back from this 'ere theatrical show
yesterday, and to-day she has two men to tea with her in her bedroom."

"Two men?" repeated Fanny. "Did you know they were coming?"

"Ask them," snorted Mrs. Carew. "And what I said is----"

"Oh, run away, Carew," Fanny broke in, "with your nasty suspicion. It's
all my bad example, you'll be saying next. Bring up some tea for me,
there's an old dear; I'm fairly parched for a drink."

But before she went into her own room Fanny ran upstairs and knocked
softly oh Joan's door. There was no answer and no sound from within the
room; yet when she tried turning the handle, and pushing her foot
against the door, it was to find it locked. What did it all mean? Two
men to tea, Dick's face as he had passed through the hall, and Joan's
locked door? That was a problem which Fanny set herself to disentangle
in her own particular way.

CHAPTER XXVI

"Of all strange things in this strange new world
Most strange is this;
Ever my lips must speak and smile
Without your kiss.
Ever mine eyes must see, despite
Those eyes they miss."

F. HEASLIP LEE.

How Joan lived through the hours that followed she never knew. Heart and
brain seemed paralysed; things had lost their power to hurt. When Fanny
crept upstairs in the early morning and knocked timidly at the door,
Joan opened it to her. She had no wish to see Fanny; she did not want to
talk about yesterday, or explain what had happened; but vaguely through
her absolute misery she realized that life had still to be gone on with,
and that Fanny was one of the items of life which it was no use trying
to disregard. As a matter of fact, until she opened the door and caught
Fanny's look of dismay, she did not remember that she was still in her
black afternoon frock, nor the fact that she had spent most of the night
crouched against the door as Dick had left her.

"Oh, my dear, my dear!" Fanny whispered; she came quickly into the room
and threw warm, loving arms round Joan. "You haven't been to bed