“And that till you do know everything, which I take it won’t be for some time yet, judging from the samples I’ve had of your perspicacity, you’d do well not to act without first asking some one’s advice?  Mine, for instance?”

“She—­” began Anna-Rose again; but her voice was trembling, for she couldn’t bear Mr. Twist’s anger.  She was too fond of him.  When he looked at her like that her own anger was blown out as if by an icy draught and she could only look back at him piteously.

But Anna-Felicitas, being free from the weaknesses inherent in adoration, besides continuing to perceive how Christopher’s feelings put her at a disadvantage, drew Mr. Twist’s attention from her by saying with gentleness, “But why add to the general discomfort by being bitter?”

“Bitter!” cried Mr. Twist, still glaring at Anna-Rose.

“Do you dispute that God made us?” inquired Anna-Felicitas, placing herself as it were like a shield between Mr. Twist’s wrathful concentration on Christopher and that unfortunate young person’s emotion.

“See here,” said Mr. Twist turning on her, “I’m not going to argue with you—­not about anything.  Least of all about God.”

“I only wanted to point out to you,” said Anna-Felicitas mildly, “that that being so, and we not able to help it, there seems little use in being bitter with us because we’re not different.  In regard to anything fundamental about us that you deplore I’m afraid we must refer you to Providence.”

“Say,” said Mr. Twist, not in the least appeased by this reasoning but, as Anna-Felicitas couldn’t but notice, quite the contrary, “used you to talk like this to that Uncle Arthur of yours?  Because if you did, upon my word I don’t wonder—­”

But what Mr. Twist didn’t wonder was fortunately concealed from the twins by the appearance at that moment of Mrs. Bilton, who, emerging from the shades of the verandah and looking about her, caught sight of them and came rapidly down the garden.

There was no escape.

They watched her bearing down on them without a word.  It was a most unpleasant moment.  Mr. Twist re-lit his cigarette to give himself a countenance, but the thought of all that Mrs. Bilton would probably say was dreadful to him, and his hand couldn’t help shaking a little.  Anna-Rose showed a guilty tendency to slink behind him.  Anna-Felicitas stood motionless, awaiting the deluge.  All Mr. Twist’s sympathies were with Mrs. Bilton, and he was ashamed that she should have been treated so.  He felt that nothing she could say would be severe enough, and he was extraordinarily angry with the Annas.  Yet when he saw the injured lady bearing down on them, if he only could he would have picked up an Anna under each arm, guilty as they were, and run and run; so much did he prefer them to Mrs. Bilton and so terribly did he want, at this moment, to be somewhere where that lady wasn’t.