t him without a word. She had received proposals of
marriage, dignified, ceremonious affairs submitted to her by the
dowager, but from this stranger came the first avowal of love she had
ever listened to. A stranger; yet he held her hand; she felt herself
drawn towards him by a force she could not combat. Her other arm was
over the back of a chair, slowly she lifted it, then he felt her hand
touch his hair and the touch was a caress.

"My queen!"

"Co--now," she said so lowly. It was almost a whisper. He arose,
pressed her hand to his lips and turned away, when a woman's voice
spoke among the palms:

"Did you say in this corner, Madame? I have not found him; Kenneth!"

"It is my mother," he said softly, and was about to draw back the
alcove draperies when the Marquise took a step towards him, staring
strangely into his face.

"_Your Mother!_" and her tones expressed only doubt and dread. "No,
no! Why, I--I know the voice; it is Madame McVeigh; she called
Kenneth, her son--"

He smiled an affirmative.

"Yes; you will forgive me for having my name spoken to you after all?
But there seems to be no help for it. So you see I am not English
despite the hat, and my name is Kenneth McVeigh."

His smile changed to quick concern as he noticed the strange look on
her face, and the swaying movement towards the chair. He put out his
hand, but she threw herself back from him with a shuddering movement
of repulsion.

And a moment later the palms parted beside Mrs. McVeigh, and she was
startled at sight of her son's face.

"Kenneth! Why, what is wrong?"

"A lady has fainted there in the alcove," he said, in a voice which
sounded strange to her; "will you go to her?"

"Fainted? Why, Kenneth!--"

"Yes; I think it is the Marquise de Caron."

CHAPTER VIII.

The dowager was delighted to find that the one evening of complete
social success had changed her daughter-in-law into a woman of
society. It had modified her prejudices. She accepted invitations
without her former protests, and was only careful that the people whom
she visited should be of the most distinguished.

Dumaresque watched her with interest. There seemed much of deliberation
back of every move she made. The men of mark were the only ones to
whom she gave encouragement, and she found several so responsive
that there was no doubt, now, as to whether she was awake to her own
power--more, she had a mind to use it. She was spoken of as one of the
bea