Gammon reflected.

“I tell you what, send and ask her to come here to-night; say it’s very important.  We’ll have them face to face—­by jorrocks, we will!”

“Polly mayn’t be ’ome before half-past ten or eleven.”

“Never mind.  I tell you we’ll have them face to face.  If it comes to that I’ll pay for a cab for Mrs. Clover to go home in.  Tell her to be here at eight.  Stop.  You mustn’t have the trouble; I can very well go round myself.  Yes, I’ll go myself and arrange it.”

“It may be a lie,” remarked Mrs. Bubb.

“So it may be, but somehow I don’t think so.  The rummiest thing that that never came into my head!  I shouldn’t be a bit surprised if Clover ain’t living in Belgrave Square, or some such place.  Just the kind of thing that happens with these mysterious johnnies.  She’ll have come across him somewhere, and he’s bribed her to keep it dark—­see?  What a gooseberry I was never to think of it!  We’ll have ’em face to face!”

“Suppose Polly won’t?”

“Won’t?  Gosh, but she shall!  If I have to carry her downstairs, she shall!  Think we’re going to let her keep a thing like this to herself?  You just wait and see.  Leave it to me, that’s all.  Lucky there’s only friends in the house.  Polly, likes a row, and, by jorrocks, she shall have one!”

CHAPTER IX

POLLY’S DEFIANCE

Content with her four lodgers, Mrs. Bubb reserved the rooms on the ground floor for her own use.  In that at the back she slept with the two younger children; the other two had a little bed in the front room, which during the daytime served as a parlour.  On occasions of ceremony—­when the parlour was needed in the evening—­the children slept in a bare attic next to that occupied by Moggie; and this they looked upon as a treat, for it removed them from their mother’s observation, and gave opportunities for all sorts of adventurous pranks.

Thus were things arranged for to-night.  Mrs. Bubb swept and garnished her parlour for the becoming reception of a visitor whom she could not but “look up to.”  Mrs. Clover’s origin was as humble as her own, and her education not much better, but natural gifts and worldly circumstances had set a distance between them.  Partly, perhaps, because she was the widow of a police constable Mrs. Bubb gave all due weight to social distinctions; she knew her “place,” and was incapable of presuming.  With Polly Sparkes she did not hesitate to use freedom, for Polly could not pretend to be on a social level with her aunt, and as a young girl of unformed character naturally owed deference to an experienced matron who took a kindly interest in her.

There had been some question of inviting Mr. Sparkes, but Mr. Gammon spoke against it.  No; let Polly have a fair chance, first of all, of unbosoming herself before her aunt and her landlady.  If she refused to do so, why then other steps must be taken.