Supper was ready when he reached home; and what a savoury smell came through the open door, quite down to the wicket!  Of course Snip was not watching for him; and little Nan also, instead of looking out for him as usual, was waiting eagerly to be helped; for, as soon as Stephen was seen over the brow of the hill, Martha poured her dainty stew into a large brown dish, and she had already portioned out a plateful for the grandfather.  Few words were uttered, for Martha was hot, and rather testy; and Stephen felt a sullen weight hanging upon his spirits.  Only every now and then the old grandfather, chuckling and mumbling over the uncommon delicacy, would call Stephen by his father’s name of James, and thank him for his rare supper.

‘Good evening,’ said Miss Anne’s voice, and as the light from the doorway was darkened, all the party looked up quickly, and Stephen felt himself growing hot and cold by turns.  ’Your supper smells very nice, Martha; there has been some good cooking done to-day.’

‘Oh, Miss Anne,’ cried Martha, colouring up with excitement and fear, ’it is a young leveret Mrs. Jones, the gamekeeper’s wife, gave me for some knitting I’d done for her; she said it ’ud be a treat for grandfather.  I’ve been cooking it all evening, ma’am, and it’s very toothsome.  If you’d only just taste a mouthful, it ‘ud make me ever so proud.’

‘Thank you, Martha,’ said Miss Anne, smiling; ’I am quite hungry with climbing the hill, and if it is as good as the bread you gave me the other day, I shall enjoy having my supper with you.’

Stephen scarcely heard what Miss Anne said to him, while he watched Martha bustling about to reach out a grand china plate, which was one of the great treasures of their possessions; and he looked on silently as she chose the daintiest morsels of the stew; but when she moved the little table nearer to the door, and laid the plate and knife and fork upon it, before Miss Anne, he started to his feet, unable to sit still and see her partake of the food which he had procured in such a manner.

‘Don’t touch it! don’t taste it, Miss Anne!’ he cried excitedly.  ’Oh, please to come out with me to the bent of the hill, and I’ll tell you why.  But don’t eat any of it!’

He darted out at the door before Martha could stop him, and ran down the green path to a place where he was out of sight and hearing of his home, waiting breathlessly for Miss Anne to overtake him.  It was some minutes before she came, and her face was overcast and troubled; but she listened in silence, while, without concealment, but with many bitter and passionate words against the gamekeeper, and excuses for his own conduct, he confessed to her all the occurrences of the night before.  Every moment his agitation increased under her quiet, mournful look of reproach, until, as he came to the close, he cried out in a sorrowful but defiant tone, ‘Oh, Miss Anne, I could not bear it!’