From the great hall the guests came forth to meet us in old English welcome, and, as I descended, Beryl herself, fresh in a pink cotton blouse and short cycling skirt, was the first to take my hand. "At last, Doctor Colkirk!" she cried. "We're all awfully delighted to see you." Our eyes met, and I saw in hers a look of genuine welcome. "You are very kind," I answered. "The pleasure is, I assure you, quite mutual." Then my host introduced me to all the others. The house, built in the form of a square, with a large courtyard in the centre, was much larger than it appeared from the exterior. The hall, filled as it was with curios and trophies of the chase--for the baronet was a keen sportsman, and his wife, too, was an excellent shot--formed a comfortable lounge. My host and hostess had travelled widely in India and the East, and most of the Atworth collection had been acquired during their visits to the Colonies. The room assigned to me was a bright pleasant one, clean, with old-fashioned chintzes, while from the deep window I could see across the lawn and the deep glen beyond, away over the winding Avon to the darkening hills. At dinner I was placed next my hostess, with Beryl on my left. The latter wore a striking gown of turquoise blue, which, cut low at the neck, suited her admirably. Her wonderful gold-brown hair had evidently been arranged by a practised maid; but, as I turned to her, before she seated herself, I saw, at her throat, an object which caused me to start in surprise; suspended by a thin gold chain around her neck, a small ornament in diamonds, an exact replica of that curious little charm, shaped like a note of interrogation, which I had taken from her on the fateful day of our marriage, which I wore around my own neck at the moment. As I looked it sparkled and flashed with a thousand brilliant fires. Could that strange little device convey any hidden meaning? It was curious that, having lost one, she should wear another exactly similar. We sat down together chatting merrily. The baronet's wife was in black lace, her white throat and arms gleaming through the transparency, while her corsage was relieved by crimson carnations. Around the table, too, were several other striking dresses, for the majority of the guests were young, and the house-party was a decidedly smart one. The meal, too, was served with a stateliness which characterised everything in the household of the Pierrepoint-Lanes. I watched my love carefully, and saw, by her slightly flushed cheeks, that my arrival gave her the utmost satisfaction. It was in the drawing-room afterwards, when we were sitting together, that I inquired if she had entirely recovered. "Oh, entirely," she replied. "It was extraordinary, was it not? Do you know whether Doctor Hoefer has visited the house again?" "I don't know," I responded. "He's so very secret in all his doings. He will tell me nothing--save one thing." "One thing--what is that?"