"Chancellor," he repeated--"Captain Chancellor. I have heard that name lately. I know something of him, Sydney, I am certain I do." Sydney looked eager to hear. "What can it be? No, it is no use, I cannot remember. It may come into my head afterwards. Have you--has--has your sister seen much of him?" "No, oh no. I never saw him till to-night, and Eugenia has only seen him once before; but--" Sydney stopped. "But that sort of thing isn't always reckoned by many or few times, eh, Sydney? "Whoever loved, that loved not at first sight? "You think there's something in that old saying, do you? I can't say, I'm sure. My experience is limited in these matters," said Gerald. His tone was bitterly sarcastic, almost jeeringly so. It was so thoroughly unlike him that Sydney looked up in surprise and alarm. "Was this the Gerald she remembered so gentle, so delicate, so chivalrous? Ah, no. It must be as she feared. Poor Gerald!" The distress in her face softened him--still more her words when she spoke again. "I don't know, Gerald. I can't answer you. I only know that I am _very_ anxious about her." "Don't you like him, then? Do you know any ill of him?" inquired Mr Thurston, with a sort of fierce eagerness. "Oh, no," said Sydney, quickly. "Not that at all. I like him very well. Of course any one can see he is a gentleman and all that. And papa likes him. He has set himself to please papa, I can see already. It is just that we know so little of him, and Eugenia is _so_ pretty, and so--I don't know what to call it. You know how clever she is, Gerald, but even that makes me more anxious about her. She sees everything by her own ideas, as it were. And some day I feel as if she might be terribly, dreadfully disappointed. I believe it would kill her, Gerald," in a lower voice. "Ah," he said, "I see. She would venture all." His tone was perfectly gentle now. A great throb of manly pity seemed to drown for the moment his bitter, bitter disappointment. Only for the time, there was many a hard struggle before him yet, for this love of his had entwined itself round every fibre of his being, and now--sometimes it seemed to him that the beautiful thing he had so nursed and cherished had turned to a viper in his bosom; that its insidious breath would change to poison every spring of love, and trust, and hope in his whole nature. No more was said for a few minutes. Then Sydney spoke--she had to call him twice by name before she caught his attention. "Gerald," she said, "I see papa speaking to Captain Chancellor. Now he is coming this way. I am sure he is going to introduce you and him to each other." "Very well," replied Mr Thurston. "I have no objection."