eemed to him to be pressing
against it, to be hemmed in by it as by towering walls of iron. For
an instant he shut his eyes. And when he did that he saw, low down, a
little boy's figure, two small outstretched hands groping.

Robin!

"Aren't you coming, Mr. Leith? What's the matter?"

"I was just seeing that the lamp was thoroughly out."

"Well----"

Dion came out.

"We'll look all over the garden. But if your mother had been in it she
must have heard you calling her. I did, although I was inside there
reading."

"I know. I thought of that too," returned Jimmy.

And Dion fancied that the boy's voice was very cold; Dion fancied this
but he was not sure. His conscience might be tricking him. He hoped that
it was tricking him.

"We'd better look among the trees," he said. "And then we'll go to the
terrace below."

"It's no use looking among the trees," Jimmy returned. "If she was up
here she must have heard us talking all this time."

Abruptly he led the way to the steps near the plane tree. Dion followed
him slowly. Was it possible that Jimmy had guessed? Was it possible that
Jimmy had caught a glimpse of his mother escaping? The boy's manner was
surely almost hostile.

They searched the garden in silence, and at length found themselves by
the fountain close to the French window of the drawing-room.

"You mother must be in the house," said Dion firmly.

"But I know she isn't!" Jimmy retorted, with a sort of dull fixed
obstinacy.

"Did you rouse the servants?"

"No."

"Where do they sleep?"

"Away from us, by themselves."

"You'd better go and look again. If you can't find your mother perhaps
you'd better wake the servants."

"I know," said Jimmy, in a voice that had suddenly changed, become
brighter, more eager--"I'll go to Sonia."

"Your mother's maid? That's it. She may know something. I'll wait down
here at the window. Got a candle?"

"Yes. I left it in there by the piano."

He felt his way in and, almost immediately, struck a light. The candle
flickered across his face and his disordered hair as he disappeared.

Dion waited by the fountain.

Where would Mrs. Clarke be? How would she explain matters? Would she
have had time to----? Oh yes! She would have had time to be ready with
some quite simple, yet quite satisfactory, piece of deception. Jimmy
would find her, and she would convince him of all that it was necessary
he should be convinced of.

Dion's chin sank down and his head al