Miss Stuart smiled faintly for Nathalie, but echoed her sentiments. "I think Cliff's mother is a charming woman," interposed Helen. "She is somewhat overbearing and imposing, but I know she does not mean to be disagreeable." "I like her," maintained Nathalie. "She is so worldly, so thoroughly magnificent." Jean laughed and meekly took her cup of tea from Helen. "I have not another word to say. I suppose the truth is that I am mortally afraid of Mrs. Archer. She completely subdues me." After a moment she spoke again, from the comfortable place she had taken on the divan: "Do you know, Nathalie, just for one moment I thought it might have been Guy of whom you were speaking." Helen set the teapot down suddenly, and there was a moment's uncomfortable silence. Miss Stuart let her glance travel slowly from Helen's flushed face to Jean's grave one. "Are you speaking of Mr. Appleton?" she asked lazily. "Yes," replied Jean, with perfect unconsciousness, "I suppose you met him at the same time you did Helen. I wish it had been he instead of Mrs. Archer." Miss Stuart shrugged her shoulders, and answered with insolent disregard of Jean's evident affection for Guy: "A nice enough man in his way, but so deadly uninteresting, so lacking in that knowledge of the world which alone makes a man worth talking to." Jean's eyes flashed, and her voice trembled with anger. "Mr. Appleton is a very dear friend of ours, Miss Stuart, and to none of us is it agreeable to hear him spoken ill of." She looked impulsively across at Helen, feeling sure that her sister would speak some word of vindication of Guy, but the girl's head was bent and she seemed wholly occupied in pushing the tea-cups aimlessly about on the polished surface of the mahogany tea-table. For the first time in her life Jean felt a contempt for her sister, and pressed her lips tightly together to keep down the bitter words that rose to them. Nathalie, who hated a scene above all things, and yet was too thoroughly in sympathy with Jean to feel equal to changing the conversation, sat down at the piano and began to drum. Miss Stuart looked from one to the other and laughed unpleasantly. "Mr. Appleton should be proud of such an ardent champion." Jean made no answer. She finished her tea in silence and then left the room, followed by a sneering glance from Miss Stuart's eyes. That evening Mrs. Andrews and her sister, Mrs. Archer, called at the manor. The young people had taken advantage of the first clear evening since Miss Stuart's arrival and had gone for a walk, so Mrs. Dennis asked her guests up to her room. During the conversation Mrs. Andrews said: "How badly Helen is looking lately." Aunt Helen agreed with her and related to Mrs. Archer the facts of Gladys' accident, and dilated upon Helen's untiring devotion to her little sister. "She is worn out," she sighed in conclusion, "and it is so hard for her to have Miss Stuart here just at present."