It was as though her vanished childhood had suddenly looked
forth at him and bidden him farewell. He felt that he would never see
the child Dinah again.
The return of the servant with his drink brought him back to his
immediate surroundings. He sat down in an easy-chair before the fire to
mix it.
The man turned to go, but he had not reached the end of the hall when the
front-door bell rang again. He went soft-footed to answer it.
Scott glanced over his shoulder as the door opened, and heard his own
name.
"Is Mr. Studley here?" a man's voice asked.
"Yes, sir. Just here, sir," came the answer, and Scott rose with a weary
gesture.
"Oh, here you are!" Airily Guy Bathurst advanced to meet him. "Don't let
me interrupt your drink! I only want a few words with you."
"I'll fetch another glass, sir" murmured the discreet man-servant, and
vanished.
Scott stood, stiff and uncompromising, by his chair. There was a hint of
hostility in his bearing. "What can I do for you?" he asked.
Bathurst ignored his attitude with that ease of manner of which he was a
past-master. "Well I thought perhaps you could give me news of Dinah" he
said. "Billy tells me he left you with her this morning."
"I see" said Scott. He looked at the other man with level, unblinking
eyes. "You are beginning to feel a little anxious about her?" he
questioned.
"Well, I think it's about time she came home," said Bathurst.
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