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  'I know she does. And if I were to pay Miss Fletching the debt that is owing to her – '

  'No, Desford!' Henrietta said stringently. 'You mustn't do that! She is by far too proud to countenance such a thing!'

  'Not, surely, if she supposed I had prevailed upon Nettlecombe to tip over the dibs!'

  'If she believed you she would write to thank him.'

  'I should tell her that he had paid Miss Fletching on condition that she neither wrote to him nor attempted to see him ever again. It is exactly what he would say, too!'

  She smiled, but shook her head. 'It won't do. Only consider what an uncomfortable situation she would be in if ever it became known that you had paid Miss Fletching to give her a home! You must consider your own situation as well: you would compromise yourself as much as Cherry. You know what all the tattle-boxes would say! And it is useless to suppose that the secret wouldn't leak out, because you may depend upon it that it would.'

  The smile was reflected in his eyes, but he said ruefully: 'I've wondered about that. I hoped you would tell me I was being absurd – but I had a pretty shrewd notion you wouldn't! You're right, of course. So I shall lay the whole case before Miss Fletching, and ask her if she knows of anyone residing in Bath who would be glad to employ Cherry. There must be scores of elderly invalids there: whenever I've visited the place it has always seemed to me to teem with decrepit old ladies! And if she must seek such a post I think Bath would be the best place for her. She would have Miss Fletching to turn to, and I know she has other acquaintances in the town whom she would be able to visit.'

  The tiny crease vanished from between her brows; she exclaimed: 'Yes, that would be the very thing for her! But not, Des, if you recommend her to a prospective employer!'

  'I thought it wouldn't be long before you made me stand the roast, my sweet wit-cracker,' he observed appreciatively. 'How fortunate it is that you should have warned me – such a slow-top as I am!'

  She laughed. 'No, no, not a slow-top, Ashley! But dreadfully imprudent when you take one of your quixotic notions into your head!'

  'Lord, Hetta, you must have windmills in your own head! I've never done such a thing in my life! Now, stop funning! If I'm to post off to Bath tomorrow, I've precious little time to waste – and, all things considered, I fancy it will be as well if I leave from here before Cherry comes in. I should be obliged to tell her what I mean to do, and if she didn't try to stop me, but liked the scheme, I don't wish to raise what might prove to be a false hope.'

  'But she's bound to know that you've been here!' protested Henrietta. 'What am I to say to her, pray?'

  'Tell her that I called here, but was unable to stay more than a few minutes, because I have an urgent appointment in London, and only broke my journey to tell her that although I couldn't bring old Nettlecombe up to scratch I haven't abandoned her, but – but have now hit upon a fresh plan for her relief. Which I didn't disclose to you, for fear it might not come to anything!'

  'Banbury man!'

  'No. I do fear it may come to nothing! By the by, has Lady Bugle tried to make her return to Maplewood?'

  'No – and that puts me in mind of something I must tell you! Lady Bugle doesn't know where she is, because when I suggested to Cherry that she should write to her she became so much agitated that I let the matter drop. But I should warn you that although Lady Bugle doesn't know she's here she does know that you had something to do with her flight. And that brings me to another thing I must tell you. Lord and Lady Wroxton know she is at Inglehurst.'

  'Oh, my God!' he ejaculated. 'As though I hadn't enough to deal with! Who was the tale-pitcher who carried that news to Wolversham?'

  'My dear Ashley, you cannot, surely, have forgotten how inevitably the smallest piece of news flies round the county! Steward's gossip, but in this case it reached Wolversham by way of one of the chambermaids, who is the daughter of our head groom. Lady Wroxton gave her leave to come to Inglehurst, on the occasion of her parents' silver wedding – and so you can wish for no further explanation!'

  He was regarding her intently. 'That's not the whole story, is it?'

  'No, not quite. Lord and Lady Wroxton visited us two days ago.'

  'If my father undertook a drive of sixteen miles, either his gout has spent itself, or he must have supposed me to be on the verge of disgracing him!' interjected the Viscount.

  'Well, he was walking with a stick, but I think he is much improved in health,' said Henrietta, forgiving this rude interruption for the sake of the balm it applied to her sorely troubled heart. 'They came to enquire after Charlie – at least, that was what Lord Wroxton told Mama – but their real purpose, I am very sure, was to discover the truth of the story they had heard. I didn't have much conversation with Lord Wroxton, but your mama made an excuse to take me apart, and she asked me, without any roundaboutation, to tell her if it was true that you had brought Cherry here, and, if so, why you had done so. She said that I need not scruple to open my budget to her, because she was very sure that you had a good reason for having done so. Des, I do like your mama so much!'

  'Yes, so do I,' he agreed cordially. 'She's a right one! What did you tell her?'

  'I told her the truth, exactly as you told it to me. And she then disclosed to me that she had received a letter from your aunt Emborough, saying that Lady Bugle had called upon her, de manding to know what you had done with Cherry. It seems that one of her daughters – I can't recall her name, but I know it was most extraordinary – '

  'They all have extraordinary names – all five of 'em!'

  'Good gracious! Well, this one seems to have been on the listen when you talked to Cherry, that night at the ball; and when it was discovered that Cherry had run away, she put it into Lady Bugle's head that she had gone off with you! How Lady Bugle can have believed such a nonsensical story I can't conceive, but apparently she did, and at once drove over to Hazelfield to demand of Lady Emborough what were your intentions! Lady Emborough wrote to your mama that she had laughed to scorn the idea that you had had anything to do with Cherry's flight, and had assured Lady Bugle that so far from stealing Cherry away from Maplewood at dawn you had been eating breakfast at Hazelfield at ten o'clock. But she also wrote that she was burning to know whether you had had anything to do with Cherry's escape, because she recalled that it had seemed to her that you were much more interested in Cherry than in her cousin, who is a singularly beautiful girl.'

  'Lucasta,' he nodded. 'I was, but never mind that! My aunt wrote to my mother, you say. She hasn't divulged any of this to my father, has she?'

  'No, and your mother hasn't shown him her letter. But it was he who first heard the local tittle-tattle, and I have a very shrewd notion that it was he who insisted on coming to visit us, to discover how true it was. Or, rather, that your mama should do so! You know what he is, Des!'

  'None better! He would think it beneath him to betray the least interest in the exploits of his sons – to anyone, of course, but the sons themselves!'

  'Exactly so!' she said, with a twinkle. 'Most fortunately, this visit was paid when Mama was feeling particularly pleased with Cherry, for having found a lace flounce which was thought to have been thrown away years ago, so I am quite certain she must have spoken of her to Lord Wroxton with the warmest approbation!'

  'Did he see Cherry?'

  'Yes, certainly he did – but whether he liked her or not I don't know! He was perfectly civil to her, at all events.'

  'That's nothing to judge by,' said Desford. 'He would be, even if he had taken her in dislike. Well, there's nothing for it: I shall have to sleep at Wolversham tonight, which means a further delay. I'm sorry for it, Hetta, but you see how I'm fixed, don't you? I don't ask you if you are willing to keep Cherry here for a few more days, because I know what your answer would be. Bless you, my dear!' He possessed himself of her hands, and again kissed them, and with no more words took his departure.

  Eleven

  The Viscount's reception at Wolversham was unexpecte