?"

As she spoke the taxi drew up at the entrance to the _Savoy_.

"Oh, it's our precious case. That's all." I handed her out twittering.
"Didn't you know we'd had a smash on the day of the wedding?"

"I did hear something. You don't mean to say...."

I paid the driver and hurried her into the hall.

"If you want to be there," I said, "to see us go down, you'll have to
have a pretty quick lunch."

We joined the others to find them in a state of profound despondency. My
companion was immediately recognized by my sister and Jill, but, to my
relief, Berry and Jonah were not quite so quick in the uptake.

"Came to hear our case," I explained, "and got swep' into the Court of
Criminal Appeal."

"Talk as you eat," said Berry. "Converse and masticate simultaneously.
You know. Like you used to do before you knew me. What's Tristram got to
say?"

I swallowed a piece of salmon before replying.

"Frankly pessimistic," I said.

Berry raised his eyes to heaven and ground his teeth. A hard look came
upon Jonah's face.

"And we've got to sit there and watch that liar laugh in his sleeve," he
said bitterly.

"And pay his costs as well as our own," said I. "Jolly, isn't it?"

Daphne touched me upon the arm, and I looked up She was very pale.

"D'you think it's hopeless?"

"I think, darling, we're up against it. And--and I'm terribly afraid."

"I see," she whispered. "Need Jill and I go back?"

"Jill needn't, but you must, dear. You're a witness."

As I spoke, I shot a glance at my cousin. The latter was unburdening her
soul to Madge Lacey, the quondam bridesmaid, and, to judge from such
fragments of the load as reached my ears, uttering sufficient slander
regarding Mr. Douglas Bladder to maintain another dozen actions at law.

As some cold tongue was set before me--

"Every thing was going so well," said Daphne miserably. "I thought Berry
was splendid."

"He was," said I, sousing my brandy with soda. "So were you, sweetheart.
Nobody could have done more. And they don't disbelieve you and Jonah.
They just think you've made a mistake."

She nodded dully.

"I don't blame them," she said slowly. "That man is so terribly clever.
His whole attitude----"

A cry from Jill interrupted her.

"Daphne! Boy! She saw the car! On the way to the wedding. It nearly ran
into her too. And Nobby running after it."

"_What?_"

Four mouths--three empty and one full of tongue--framed the
interrogative simultaneously.

"M