At Chunerbutty’s table the party consisted of the Rices, one of the Civil Servants, the Dalehams, and Noreen’s friend.  The planter’s wife neglected the man beside her to stare at Mrs. Smith, taking in every detail of her dress, while Ida chattered gaily to Fred, whose good looks had attracted her the moment that she first saw him on the platform of Jalpaiguri station.  She was already apparently quite consoled for the loss of her Calcutta admirer.

Noreen sat pale and abstracted beside Chunerbutty, answering his remarks in monosyllables, eating nothing, and alleging a headache as an explanation of her mood.  The unexpected sight of Dermot had shaken her, and she dreaded the moment when she must greet him.  Yet she was anxious to witness his meeting with Ida, hoping that she might glean from it some idea of how matters really stood between them.

After tiffin a move was made into the long chamber arranged as the guests’ lounge.  Here introductions between those who had not previously known each other and meetings between old acquaintances took place; and with an inward shrinking Noreen saw Dermot approaching.  She was astonished to observe that Ida’s careless and indifferent greeting was responded to by him in a coldly courteous manner almost indicative of strong dislike.  The girl wondered if they were both consummate actors.  Dermot turned to her.  He spoke in his usual pleasant and friendly manner; but she seemed to detect a trace of reserve that he had never showed before.  She was almost too confused to reply to him and turned with relief to shake hands with Payne and Granger, who had come up with him.

Chunerbutty played the host well, introduced those who were strangers to each other, and saw that the Palace servants, who were unused to European habits, brought the coffee, liqueurs, and smokes to all the guests, where they gathered under the long punkah that swung lazily from the painted ceiling and barely stirred the heated air.

As soon as it was cool enough to drive out in the State carriages and motor-cars that waited in the outer courtyard, the afternoon was devoted to sight-seeing.  Chunerbutty, in the leading car with Noreen and the District Superintendent of Police, acted as guide and showed them about the city.  Dermot noted the lowering looks of many of the natives in the narrow streets, and overhead more than one muttered insult to the English race from men huddling against the houses to escape the carriages.

The visitors were invited by Chunerbutty to enter an ornate temple of Kali, in which a number of Hindu women squatted on the ground before a gigantic idol representing the goddess in whose honour the Puja festival is held.  The image was that of a fierce-looking woman with ten arms, each hand holding a weapon, her right leg resting on a lion, her left on a buffalo-demon.

“I say, Chunerbutty, who’s the lady?” asked Granger.  “I can’t say I like her looks.”