aken place. As they stopped to bait
the horses at the little hostelry, he made various inquiries
concerning the priest and his annual visitation to the wake on May
Day, and his face looked none the less severe as he heard the
replies.

"Methinks the knot hath been something tightly tied--too tight for
it to be easily unloosed," whispered Philip to his sister as he
lifted her to the saddle after the noontide halt; and she could not
but answer by a bright smile, which she saw reflected in his face.

The day, which had been bright and fine, turned dull and lowering
as the riders neared the Cross Way House, as the residence of Lady
Humbert was called; and Kate looked curiously at the house as they
approached it, wondering what sort of a life its inmates led.

To her eyes, accustomed to the seclusion of park and grounds, the
most striking feature of this house was that it stood actually upon
the road itself. It occupied an angle of the cross formed by the
junction of four roads, and its north and east windows looked out
straight upon these two highways, with nothing intervening between
them but some twenty feet of paved walk enclosed behind walls ten
feet high, and guarded by strong gates of wrought iron.

Doubtless to the south and west there were gardens and grounds. The
walls seemed to run a long way along the road, and Kate felt
certain that she should find seclusion and privacy there. She could
see tall trees rearing their heads above the wall, and was certain
from the aspect of the house, which was sufficiently imposing, that
she should find within the ease and luxury to which she was
accustomed.

On the whole, she rather liked the prospect of looking out upon the
roads. If Culverhouse were to ride by, she could signal to him from
the windows. She could watch the fine folk passing to and fro on
their way to London. Possibly a belated traveller might ask shelter
at the house, and amuse them with tales of adventure and peril.
Kate had time to think of many things as their horses stood at the
gates awaiting admittance; and when these were thrown back at last,
and they rode through an archway and into a centre courtyard round
which the house was built, the girl was delighted with everything;
for the quadrangular structure was a novelty to her, and a novelty
which took her fancy not a little. There were servants to look
after the horses; and it was plain the travellers were expected,
for they were quickly ushered int