Falk never took his eyes from her. At that moment she came down the room and saw him. She did not come over to him at once, but stopped and talked to some one at another table. At last she was beside him, standing up against his table and looking over his head at the window behind him. "Nasty weather, Mr. Brandon," she said. Her voice was low and not unpleasant; although she rolled her r's her Glebeshire accent was not very strong, and she spoke slowly, as though she were trying to choose her words. "Yes," Falk answered. "Good for your trade, though." "Dirty weather always brings them in," she said. He did not look at her. "Been busy to-day?" "Nothing much this morning," she answered. "I've been away at my aunt's, out to Borheddon, these last two days." "Yes. I saw you were not here," he said. "Did you have a good time?" "Middling," she answered. "My aunt's been terrible bad with bronchitis this winter. Poor soul, it'll carry her off one of these days, I reckon." "What's Borheddon like?" he asked. "Nothing much. Nothing to do, you know. But I like a bit of quiet just for a day or two. How've you been keeping, Mr. Brandon?" "Oh, I'm all right. I shall be off to London to look for a job one of these days." He looked up at her suddenly, sharply, as though he wanted to catch her interest. But she showed no emotion. "Well, I expect this is slow for you, a little place like this. Plenty going on in London, I expect." "Yes. Do you ever think you'd like to go there?" "Daresay I shall one of these days. Never know your luck. But I'm not terrible anxious.... Well, I must be getting on." He caught her eyes and held them. "Come back for a moment when you're less busy. I've got something I want to say to you." Very slightly the colour rose in her dark cheek. "All right," she said. When she had gone he drew a deep breath, as though he had surmounted some great and sudden danger. He felt that if she had refused to come he would have risen and broken everything in the place. Now, as though he had, by that little conversation with her, reassured himself about her, he looked around the room. His attention was at once attracted by a man who was sitting in the further corner, his back against the wall, opposite to him.