” Miss Grey … marry my grandfather?”

” Such things have happened, madam. Rich old gentlemen do marry young nurses now and then. They get a feeling they can’t do without them and the nurses have their eyes on the money, you see.”

” I’m sure my grandfather would never be married for his money. He’s far too shrewd.”

“That was what we said. She could never achieve that, and she didn’t.

But Mrs. Dawson and I reckon it wasn’t for want of trying. ” He came closer to me and whispered: ” The truth is, madam, we reckon she’s what you might call. an adventuress. “

” I see.”

” There’s something more. Our married daughter came to see us not so long ago…. It was just before you came home, madam. Well, she happened to see Nurse Grey and she said she was sure she’d seen her picture in the paper somewhere. Only she didn’t think the name was Grey.”

” Why was her picture in the paper?”

” It was some case or other. Maureen couldn’t remember what. But she thought it was something bad.”

“People get mixed up about these things. Perhaps she’d won a beauty competition or something like that.”

” Oh no, it wasn’t that or Maureen would have remembered. It was something to do with the courts. And it was Nurse something. But Maureen didn’t think it was Grey. It was just the face. She has got the sort of face, madam, that once seen is never forgotten.”

“Did you ask her?”

” Oh no, madam, it wasn’t the sort of thing we could ask. She would be offended, and unless we’d got proof, she could deny it, couldn’t she?

No, there’s nothing we can put a finger on. And now you’ve come home it doesn’t seem the same. His lordship’s not so likely to get caught—that’s how Mrs. Dawson and I see it, madam. But we’re keeping our eyes open. “

” Oh … it’s Mrs. Pendorric.”

I turned sharply to see Althea Grey smiling at me, and I flushed rather guiltily, feeling at a disadvantage to have been discovered discussing her with the butler. I wondered if she had overheard anything. Voices carried in the open air.

” You don’t look as if you’ve been up half the night,” she went on. ” And I’m sure you must have been. What an evening! Lord Polhorgan was absolutely delighted with the way everything went off.” Dawson slipped away and I was left alone with her. Her hair, piled high beneath the snowy cap, was beautiful; but I wondered what it was that made her face so distinctive. Was it the thick brows, several shades darker than her hair; the eyes of that lovely deep blue shade that is almost violet and doesn’t need to take its colour from anything because it is always a more vivid blue than anything else could possibly be? The straight nose was almost Egyptian, and seemed odd with such Anglo-Saxon fairness. The wide mouth was slightly mocking now. I felt sure that even if she had not overheard our conversation, she knew that Dawson had been speaking of her derogatively.

It was a face of mystery, I decided, a face that concealed secrets; the face of a woman of the world, a woman who had lived perhaps recklessly and had no desire for the past to prejudice the present, or future.

I remembered that the young man with whom I had danced had mentioned something from the past too. So Dawson’s suspicions were very likely not without some foundation.

I felt wary of this woman as I walked with her towards the house. ” Lord Polfaorgan was hoping you’d come this morning. I told him you most certainly would.”

” I was wondering how he felt after last night.”

” It did him a world of good. He enjoyed feting his beautiful granddaughter.”

I felt that she was secretly laughing at me, and I was glad when I was with my grandfather and she had left us alone together.

It was a week later mat there was a call in the night. The telephone beside our bed rang and I was answering it before Roc had opened his eyes.

” This is Nurse Grey. Could you come over at once? Lord Polhorgan is very ill, and asking for you.”

I leaped out of bed.

” What on earth’s happened?” asked Roc.

When I told him he made me slip on some clothes, and, doing the same himself, said: ” We’ll drive over right away.”

“What’s the time?” I asked Roc, as we drove the short distance between Pendorric and Polhorgan.

” Just after one.”

” He must be bad for her to ring us,” I said. Roc put his hand over mine, as though to reassure me that whatever was waiting for me, he would be there to share it. As we drove up to the portico the door opened and Dawson let us in. ” He’s very bad, I’m afraid, madam.”

” I’ll go straight up.”

I ran up the stairs. Roc at my heels. Roc waited outside the bedroom while I went in.

Althea Grey came towards me. ” Thank God you’ve come,” she said.

“He’s been asking for you. I phoned as soon as I knew.” I went to the bed where my grandfather lay back on his pillows; he was quite exhausted and I could see that he was finding it difficult to get his bread.

“Grandfather,” I said.

His lips formed the name Favel; but he did not say it. I knelt by the bed and took his hand in mine; I kissed it, feeling desolate. I had found him such a short time ago. Was I to lose him so soon?

” I’m here, Grandfather. I came as soon as I heard you wanted me.” I knew by the slight movement of his head that he understood. Althea Grey was at my side. She whispered: ” He’s not in pain. I’ve given him morphia. He’ll be feeling the effect of it now. Dr. Clement will be here at any moment.”

I turned to look at her and I saw from her expression that his condition was very grave. Then I saw Roc standing some little way from the bed. Althea Grey moved back to where he was and I turned my attention to my grandfather.

” Favel.” It was a whisper. His fingers moved in mine, and I knew that he was trying to say something to me so I brought my face nearer to his.

” Are you there … Favel?”

“Yes, Grandfather,” I whispered.

“It’s … good-bye, Favel.”

” No.”

He smiled. ” Such a short time…. But it was a happy time … the happiest time … Favel, you must be …” His face puckered and I bent nearer to him.

” Don’t talk, Grandfather. It’s too much of an effort.” His brows puckered into a frown. ” Favel … must be … careful…. It’ll be yours now. Make sure …”

I guessed what he was trying to tell me. Even when he was fighting for his breath he was preoccupied with his money.

” It’s different …” he went on, ” when you have it…. Can’t be sure can never be sure…. Favel … take care….”

“Grandfather, please don’t worry about me. Don’t think about anything but getting better. You will get better. You must….” He shook his head. ” Couldn’t find …” he began; but his battle for breath was too much for him; his eyes were closing. ” Tired,” he murmured. ” So tired. Favel … stay … be careful…. It’s different with money. Perhaps I was wrong … but I wanted … be careful. I wish I could stay a while to … look after you, Favel.”

His lips were moving now but no sound came. He lay back on his pillows, his face looking shrunken and grey. He was very near the end by the time Dr. Clement arrived.

We sat in the room where I had played so many games of chess with him—Dr. Clement, Roc, Nurse Grey and myself.

Dr. Clement was saying: “It’s not entirely unexpected. It could have happened at any time. Did he ring the bell?”

” No. Or I should have heard him. My room is next to his. The bell is always by his bed for him to ring if he wanted anything in the night.

It was Dawson who went in. He said he was locking up when he saw Lord Polhorgan’s light on. He found him gasping and in great pain. He called me and I saw that it was necessary to give him morphia, which I did. “

Dr. Clement rose and went to the door.

” Dawson,” he called. ” Are you there, Dawson?” Dawson came into the room.

” I’ve heard that you came in and found Lord Polhorgan in distress.”

” Yes, sir. He’d snapped on the light and seeing it I looked in to make sure he was all right. I saw he was trying to ask for something, but I didn’t, know what, for a while. Then I found out it was his pills. I couldn’t find them then so I called Nurse and came back with her. That was when she gave him the morphia.”

” So it seems as though this attack developed into a major one because he had no chance of holding it off.”

” I’d always impressed on him the need to have his pills at hand,” said Althea Grey.

Dawson was looking at her scornfully. ” I found them after, sir. After his lordship had had the morphia, that was. The box was lying on the floor. It had come open and the pills was scattered, sir. The bell was on the floor also.”

” He must have knocked them over when he reached for the pills,” said Althea Grey.

I looked at Roc, who was staring straight ahead of him.

“A sad business,” murmured Dr. Clement.

“I think I ought to give you a sedative, Mrs. Pendorric. You’re looking all in.”

” I’ll take her home,” said Roc. ” There’s no point in waiting here now. We can do nothing till the morning.”

Dr. Clement smiled at me sadly. ” There was nothing we could do to prevent it,” he told me.

” If he had had his pills,” I said, ” that might have prevented it.”

” It might have.”

” What an unfortunate accident …” I began ; and my eyes met Dawson’s and I saw that his were gleaming with speculation.

” It couldn’t be helped,” Roc was saying. ” It’s easy to see how it happened … reaching out … in a hurry … knocking over the box and the bell.”

I shivered, and Roc put his arm through mine.