The moments crawled on, and each was a little hotter, or seemed it, than the one before. Whenever there came a lightning-flash I tried to take in at a glance the whole vista of lawns and gardens, but I did not see the two of them again. By that time, I suppose, I was partially drunk; and I hardly recollect what happened except that after a seemingly immense gap of drowsiness Severn himself was next to me, dragging his cane chair nearer to mine. "I'm so pleased Terry's decided to accept Karelsky's offer," he said. "He _has_ told you, then?" "Yes ... Karelsky goes to Vienna to-morrow night, and Terry will accompany him, if he can make arrangements in time." "That's rather quick work, isn't it?" "It is, I admit. But it's vacation-time and it ought to be possible.... By the way, what do you think of Karelsky, eh? Rather a rough diamond----" "I'll tell you this much," he went on, without waiting for my opinion, "Karelsky's a man of business as well as a man of science. He'll get his value out of Terry, you can bet your life. But then, what Terry must do is to get his value out of Karelsky. See?" "And on the whole you think it'll be a good thing for Terry?" "If he uses his chances it will be a splendid thing. And, of course, if he _doesn't_ use his chances, nothing will do him very much good. I like him a great deal, you know. So does Helen. I'm sure she'll miss him when he's gone.... By the way, where is she? Have you seen her?" I told him I hadn't seen her for some while, and soon afterwards he had to leave me to bid the first of the good-byes. XI I _was_ drunk. I had a persistent and rather ridiculous desire to lean back in my chair and go to sleep. This, in fact, is what I actually did, until a terrific peal of thunder awoke me--or was it Severn laughing? Anyway, he _was_ laughing. He was leaning over the back of the chair next to mine, like a wild animal waiting to spring; and Helen was standing close to him, with her eyes fixed on me. "So you're another victim, are you?" he said. I stammered an apology and he interrupted hurriedly: "My dear chap, you needn't say all that. It has been an interesting example of what Karelsky was talking about--the effects of heat on the human brain. Or was it something else as well as the heat?... Anyhow, Professor Foljambe could hardly walk to his taxi. Even Terry the teetotaller had to clear off in a hurry." "Did he?--Wh--why?" It was Helen who answered. She said, very quietly: "He said the heat made him feel ill, so he just slipped away without making any fuss." "And without even seeing me," Severn added. I said something about calling at his lodgings to see how he was, and Helen remarked: "Oh, you needn't be alarmed about him--it was only the heat."