Though she knew she was out of it.  It was dizzying—­that feeling of having lost herself.  She had never known it before.

After she had walked very fast for what seemed a long time she seemed able to gather at least part of her forces back under control.

That blinding sense of everything being scattered, of her being powerless, was passing.

And the first thing sanity brought was the suggestion that Ann, too, might be like that.  Once before Ann had been “scattered” that way—­oh she understood it now as she had not been able to do then.  And perhaps Ann would have less power to gather herself back—­

She grew frightened.  She turned toward home, walking fast as she could—­worried to find herself so far away.

Major Darrett stepped out from the library to speak to her, but she hurried past him up the stairs.

Ann was not in the room where she had left her.

She looked through the other rooms.  She called to her.

Then it must be—­she told herself—­all the while fear growing larger in her heart—­that Ann, too, had gone out for a walk.

“Worth,” she asked, grotesquely overdoing unconcern, “where’s Miss Ann?  Has she gone for a walk?”

“Why, Aunt Kate, she was called away.”

“Called away?” whispered Katie.  “Called where?”

“She said she was called away.  She’s gone.”

“But she’s coming back?  When did she say, dear,” she pleaded, “that she would be back?”

“I don’t know, Aunt Kate.  She felt awful bad because she had to go.  She came and kissed me—­she kissed me and kissed me—­and said she hated to leave me—­but that she had to go.  She kept saying she had to.”

In the hall was Nora.  “Nora,” asked Katie, standing with her back to her, “what is it about Miss Forrest?”

“She was called away, Miss Kate.  A telegram.  I didn’t see no boy—­”

“They must have ’phoned it,” said Katie sharply.

“Yes’m.  I didn’t hear the ’phone.  But I was busy.  I’m so upset, Miss Kate, about them champagne glasses.  We’ve telephoned over the river—­”

“Never mind the champagne glasses!  What about Miss Forrest?  How did she go?  When did she go?”

“She went in Mr. Osborne’s automobile.  Miss Osborne sent you some beautiful flowers, Miss Kate.  Oh they’re just lovely!”

“Oh, I don’t care anything about flowers!  You say Ann went in the machine?”

“Yes’m.  She told the chauffeur—­he brought the flowers—­that big colored man, you know, Miss Kate—­that she was called away, and would he take her to the station.  And he said sure he would—­and so they went.  But, Miss Kate—­it’s most five o’clock—­what will we do about those two champagne glasses!”

“Merciful heavens, Nora!  Stop talking about them!  I don’t care what you do about them!”

She went down to the library.  “Look here,” she said to the Major, “what is this?  What have you done?  Where’s Ann gone?”