Captain Henderson was as much in the way as a man could be who knew but one family in the place, and had no resource but sketching.  His yellow moustache was to be seen at all manner of unexpected and unwelcome times.  If that great honour, a walk with papa, was granted, out he popped from Marine Hotel, or a seat in the public gardens, evidently lying in ambush to spoil their walk.  Or he was found tete-a-tete with mamma before the five-o’clock tea, talking, no doubt, ‘Raphaels, Correggios, and stuff,’ as in the Royal Wardour days.  Even at Clipston, or in the coves on the beach, he was only too apt to start up from some convenient post for sketching.  He really did draw beautifully, and Mysie would have been thankful for his counsels if public opinion had not been so strong.

Moreover, Kitty Varley conveyed to Valetta the speculations of Rockstone whether Gillian was the attraction.

‘Now, Val,’ said Mysie, ‘how can you listen to such nonsense!’

‘You said so before, and it wasn’t nonsense.’

‘It wasn’t Aunt Jane.’

‘No, but it was somebody.’

’Everybody does marry somebody; but it is no use for us to think about it, for it always turns out just the contrary to all the books one ever read; so there’s no going by anything, and I don’t believe it right to talk about it.’

‘Why not?  Every one does.’

’All the good teachings say one should not talk of what one does not want one’s grown-ups to hear.’

‘Oh, but then one would never talk of anything!’

’Oh, Val!  I won’t be sure, but I don’t believe I should mind mamma’s hearing all I say.’

’Yes; but you’ve never been to school, and I heard Bee Varley say she never saw anybody so childishly simple for her age.’

This brought the colour into Mysie’s face, but she said—–­

’I’d rather be simple than talk as mamma does not like; and, Val, do on no account tell Gillian.’

‘I haven’t.’

‘And don’t; don’t tell Wilfred, or you know how horrid he would be.’

There was a tell-tale colour in Valetta’s cheeks, by which Mysie might have discerned that Valetta had not resisted the charm of declaring ‘that she knew something,’ even though this was sure to lead to tortures of various kinds from Wilfred until it was extracted.  Still the youth as yet was afraid to do much worse than look preternaturally knowing at his sister and give hints about Fangs’ holding fast and the like, but quite enough to startle her into something between being flattered and indignant.  She was scarcely civil to the Captain, and felt bound to express her dislike on every possible occasion, though only to provoke a grin from Wilfred and a giggle from Valetta.

Lady Merrifield’s basket-carriage and little rough pony had been brought from Silverfold, and she took Kalliope out for quiet drives whenever it was possible; but a day of showers having prevented this, she was concerned to find herself hindered on a second afternoon.  Gillian offered to be her substitute.