‘So you are back,’ said Mrs Askerton, as soon as the first greeting was over.

‘Yes; I am back.’

‘I supposed you would not stay there long after the funeral.’

‘No; what good could I do?’

‘And Captain Aylmer is still there, I suppose?’

‘I left him at Perivale.’

There was a slight pause, as Mrs Askerton hesitated before she asked her next question.  ‘May I be told anything about the will?’ she said.

’The weary will!  If you knew how I hated the subject you would not ask me.  But you must not think I hate it because it has given me nothing.’

‘Given you nothing?’

’Nothing !  But that does not make me hate it.  It is the nature of the subject that is so odious.  I have now told you all everything that there is to be told, though we were to talk for a week.  If you are generous you will not say another word about it.’

‘But I am so sorry.’

’There that’s it.  You won’t perceive that the expression of such sorrow is a personal injury to me.  I don’t want you to be sorry.’

‘How am I to help it?’

’You need not express it.  I don’t come pitying you for supposed troubles.  You have plenty of money; but if you were so poor that you could eat nothing but cold mutton, I shouldn’t condole with you as to the state of your larder.  I should pretend to think that poultry and piecrust were plentiful with you.’

‘No, you wouldn’t, dear not if I were as dear to you as you are to me.’

’Well, then, be sorry; and let there be an end of it.  Remember how much of all this I must of necessity have to go through with poor papa.’

‘Ah, yes; I can believe that.’

’And he is so far from well.  Of course you have not seen him since I have been gone.’

‘No; we never see him unless he comes up to the gate there.’  Then there was another pause for a moment.  And what about Captain Aylmer?’ asked Mrs Askerton.

‘Well what about him?’

‘He is the heir now?’

‘Yes he is the heir.’

‘And that is all?’

’Yes; that is all.  What more should there be?  The poor old house at
Perivale will be shut up, I suppose.’

‘I don’t care about the old house much, as it is not to be your house.’

‘No it is not to be my house certainly.’

‘There were two ways in which it might have become yours.’

‘Though there were ten ways, none of those ways have come my way,’ said Clara.

’Of course I know that you are so close that though there were anything to tell you would not tell it.’

’I think I would tell you anything that was proper to be told; but now there is nothing proper or improper.’

’Was it proper or improper when Mr Belton made an offer to you as I knew he would do of course; as I told you that he would?  Was that so improper that it could not be told?’