r bordered on familiarity:
perhaps she had lived long in the family, and was treated more as a
friend than a servant. She was an exceedingly plain young woman, and her
light eyes had a curious lack of expression in them, and yet, like Miss
Darrell's, they seemed able to see everything.

Seeing me glance round the room,--it was a large, handsomely furnished
bedroom, with a small dressing-room attached to it,--she said, 'This is
Miss Darrell's room. Mrs. Darrell used to occupy it, and Miss Etta slept
in the dressing-room, but ever since her mother's death she has had both
rooms.'

'Indeed,' was my brief reply: but I could not help thinking that Miss
Darrell had very pleasant and roomy quarters. There were evidences of
luxury everywhere, from the bevelled glass of the walnut-wood wardrobe to
the silver-mounted dressing-case and ivory brushes on the toilet-table. A
pale embroidered tea-gown lay across the couch, and a book that looked
very much like a French novel was thrown beside it. Miss Darrell was
evidently a Sybarite in her tastes.

Uncle Max was waiting for me at the foot of the stairs, and took me into
the drawing-room at once.

To our surprise, we found Miss Hamilton there alone. The room was only
dimly lighted, and she was sitting in a large carved chair beside the
fire with an open book in her lap.

I wonder if Max noticed how like a picture she looked. She was dressed
very simply in a soft creamy cashmere, and her fair hair was piled up on
her head in regal fashion: the smooth plaits seemed to crown her; a
little knot of red berries that had been carelessly fastened against her
throat was the only colour about her; but she looked more like Clytie
than ever, and again I told myself that I had never seen a sweeter face.

She greeted me with gentle warmth, but she hardly looked at Max; her
white lids dropped over her eyes whenever he addressed her, and when she
answered him she seemed to speak in a more measured voice than usual. Max
too appeared extremely nervous; instead of sitting down, he stood upon
the bear-skin rug and fidgeted with some tiny Chinese ornaments on the
mantelpiece. Neither of them appeared at ease: was it possible that they
were not friends?

'You are not often to be found in solitude, Miss Hamilton,' observed Max;
and it struck me his voice was a little peculiar. 'I do not think I have
ever seen you sitting alone in this room before.'

'No,' she answered quickly, and then she went on