'Shea thought little of them. They had an exciting journey,
rowing between the ice-floes in the bay, carrying their boat over one
ice fragment and then another, launching it each time into a sea of
dangers. They spent a couple of days entertained by the chief man of
this island, and came back again at the same delightful jeopardy of
their lives.

After this Mr. Pembroke took Caius home with him, driving again over the
sand-dune, upon which, now that the drifts had almost melted, a road
could be made. All winter the dunes had been absolutely deserted,
impassable by reason of the depth of snow. It would seem that even the
devil himself must have left their valleys at this time, or have
hibernated. The chief interest to Caius in this expedition was to seek
the hollow where he had seen, or thought he had seen, the band of
mysterious men to which O'Shea introduced him; but so changed was the
appearance of the sand by reason of the streams and rivulets of melting
snow, and so monotonous was the dune, that he grew confused, and could
not in the least tell where the place had been. He paid a visit to
Pembroke's house, and to the inn kept by the old maids, and then went
back to his own little wooden domicile with renewed contentment in its
quaint appointments, in its solitude, but above all in its nearness to
that other house in which the five women lived guarded by the mastiffs.

Caius knew well enough that these plans for his amusement had been
instigated by Madame Le Maitre. She was keeping out of his way, except
that now and then he met her upon the roads and exchanged with her a
friendly greeting.

The only satisfaction that Caius sought for himself at this time was an
occasional visit to O'Shea's house. All winter there had been growing
upon him a liking for the man's wife, although the words that he
exchanged with her were at all times few. Now the feeling that he and
she were friends had received a distinct increase. It was a long time
since Caius had put to anyone the questions which his mind was
constantly asking concerning Madame Le Maitre. Apart from any thought of
talking about the object of their mutual regard, it was a comfort to him
to be in the presence of O'Shea's wife. He felt sure that she understood
her mistress better than anyone else did, and he also suspected her of a
lively sympathy with himself, although it was not probable that she knew
more concerning his relation to Josephine Le Maitre than merely