and--"

Sylvia turned round with a flash of anger in her eyes, but suddenly
softened and took both the old lady's hands in her own, holding them in
a tender pressure.

"Listen," she said, and her voice, gentle though it was, had in it a new
quality which awed and impressed the hearer. "Listen!--there is not one
single minute to spare. If there was a train at half-past three, I
should catch that, box or no box, for father is dying, Aunt Margaret--he
would not have let me be summoned like this for any passing ailment.
Nothing in all the world would make me wait here until to-morrow, so
please, dear, do not hinder me now. I know it is impossible for you to
come with me, but I will telegraph the moment I arrive, and if--if there
is still time, you can follow then."

"But you can't travel alone! Edward would not like it. He is so
particular. How can you manage about the trains?"

"Listen! I have thought of that too. Put on your bonnet and go to the
telephone office at the corner. Ask the people at the agency if they
can possibly send a lady courier to meet me at the train at Charing
Cross. If they can, very well! If they can't, I am twenty-two, and can
speak French easily, and am not afraid of travelling by myself. I will
telegraph to Cook's agent to meet me in Paris, if it will make you any
happier, but I am going, auntie dear, and I have not a moment to spare.
I will get dressed now, and the cab must be here in half an hour."

Miss Munns turned without a word, and left the room. She had the sense
to know when she was beaten, and, having once faced the situation, set
to work in her usual business-like fashion, and proved the most capable
of helpers. Having been successful in arranging for a lady courier
through the convenient medium of the telephone, she returned home to
write labels, fasten together cloaks and umbrellas, and order a hasty
but tempting little meal for the refreshment of the traveller. This
accomplished, she returned once more to the bedroom, where Sylvia was
putting the last touches to her packing.

"Nearly finished? That's right, my dear. You have eight minutes still,
and tea is waiting for you downstairs. Don't trouble to tidy the room,
I'll attend to that after you have gone. All these things on the bed--
they had better be packed away in the attics, I suppose. It's a pity
they were ever bought, as things have turned out. You may never need
them now."

"No, I may never need