triumph. She wished to love Maud, and
to be loved by her; but she also wished
that Maud should be brought to see and
to acknowledge how brilliant was her
fortune, how great a lady the Princess de'
Barletti would be, and how far above pity
or contempt she had raised herself.

She had written, perhaps too humbly,
to Hugh Lookwood, dashing off the note
without stopping to weigh her words. If
so, she must let them all see that she was
no penitent to be pardoned and wept over,
but a woman who had gained what she
aimed at, and who understood its value.

She turned the flashing diamond round
and round on her finger, as she answered
slowly, " You mourned for me? Yet you
did not answer my letter! Your mourning
cost you little trouble."

"Not answer your letter! Indeed,
Veronica, I did. And on my own
responsibility, and at the risk of offending——at
some risk. Did you never get my answer?"

The blood rushed into Veronica's face as
she listened, and a suspicion of the truth
crossed her mind: namely, that Maud's
letter had .been suppressed by Sir John
Gale. But she merely said, " Never.
I never heard from any one at home,
although I wrote several times. If you did
write," she paused and changed her phrase
after a quick glance at Maud's face: "since
you did write, your letter must have gone
astray in some way."

"Oh, Veronica, how cruel you must have
thought me! And yet you could not,
surely, think me so? You did not doubt
my affection for you?"

"Oh, I alternately doubted and believed
all sorts of things. Well; it is over now."

"Dear Veronica, I have been told—Hugh
told me of his interview with those gentlemen
to-day. And we are both unfeignedly
relieved and thankful to know that—that—
that your claim will be established."

"Although you lose by it! There was
no doubt of the illegality of the will. Any
court would have given the case in my
favour. But I am not the less sensible,"
added Veronica, after an instant's hesitation,
"of your generous forbearance. To
have gone to law would have been very
terrible—for every one."

"It should never have been done with
my consent. Veronica, you have not asked
—you have said nothing about—Uncle
Charles. Did you fear to ask? He is well,
thank God."

"I had heard that my father was alive
and well from Mr. Frost. I hope he is also
a little less obdurate against his only child
than he was."

Maud was shocked by the hardness of
the tone in which this was said. Veronica's
manner altogether was unexpectedly
chilling after the warmth of her first embrace,
and the tenour of the note she had written.
"He has been very unhappy, Veronica."
"I regret it: although my unhappiness
seems to have been indifferent to him."

"As you begged in your note that no
word should be said of it to any one, we
did not even tell Uncle Charles that ——"

"Tell him? Is he here, in London?"
"Yes, dear. Did you not know it? Ah, I
am glad you did not know it! That explains.
If you had known he was here, you would
have asked to see him, would you not?"

Maud's eyes were full of tears as she
spoke, and she took Veronica's hand in both
hers caressingly.

"Papa is here! You have been with him
quite lately—to-day?"

"Yes. I left him at Gower- street. You
will not be angry, dear, when I tell you
that, as you had made no sign, we had
resolved—Hugh and I—to say nothing to
your father about all the trouble, now past
and over, until he should be at home again
in Shipley. I am going back with him.
And then, when we were quietly together
in the old house, I should have told him."
"Then papa does not know that I—that
Sir John Gale is dead?"

"No; he has lived quite secluded from
the chance of hearing it."

"What brought him to town?"

Maud cast her eyes down, and her voice
sank as she answered: " He came for Aunt
Hilda's funeral."

There was a painful silence. Even Veronica's
egotism was dumb before all the
considerations connected with those words.
Presently Maud said, " But now you will
try to see your father before we go away,
will you not, dear Veronica?"

Veronica was agitated. She rose from
her chair, and walked quickly about the
room. Then she returned to Maud's side,
and, bending over her, kissed her forehead.
"Maudie, Maudie, do you think he has
any love left in his heart for me?"

"Yes, dear Veronica; I am sure he loves
you. Do not let that doubt stand between
you."

"No; but I had intended something
different. I meant, of course, to see papa.
I meant to try to see him later, after I——
I believe it will be best that I should not
see him yet."