But his mind was made up that he would not leave Achree until he had seen Isla by herself to bid her good-bye. He was in no haste--he never was in any of the affairs of life--having proved that most things come to the man who bides his time. But perhaps just there he made one mistake, arising from ignorance of the quick Celtic temperament, which cannot brook slowness or delay. Isla’s eyes met his just once across the room, and there was quite clearly a message for him in the look. It bade him wait. When all the tea had been served, and she had answered as composedly as she could the remarks made to her by Neil, she rose and quite deliberately walked across the room to the place where Rosmead stood talking to her Uncle Tom. "You have a long way to go back to Glasgow, Mr. Rosmead. Are you in haste to leave us?" "Not in haste to leave you, but I must be going soon. Can I speak with you for a few minutes?" "Yes, it is why I have come. Will you come down to the library?" she said. And Neil Drummond, with eyes that had something of the baleful glow of the watch-fires in them, had the chagrin of beholding them leave the room together, as if it were quite a matter of course. "Don t you think that American bounder has presumed a lot to-day, Malcolm?" he said gruffly to Mackinnon, who happened to pass near him at the moment. Malcolm looked the surprise he felt. "I don’t think so, Neil. He has been most awfully kind, don’t you know? I dare say Isla has some message for his mother about when they can come back to the house." Neil tried to accept this perfectly feasible explanation, but if he had seen the two talking earnestly together at the library window his mind would undoubtedly have been most seriously disturbed. "It was so very kind of you to come to-day and take all the trouble for us," said Isla, as the door closed upon them. "Do you still intend to sail away on Thursday?" "On Friday. My boat sails from Liverpool," he corrected gently. "I go to London on Thursday." "And when will you come back?" "Not before Christmas, I am afraid. I’ve had more than six months’ furlough already, you see, and I haven’t the ghost of an excuse for stopping on this side any longer." "Except your mother. You will not like leaving her, I am sure." "I don’t. But she is accustomed to my journeyings to and fro in the earth and up and down in it. I shall be very happy, thinking of her here in this house. She has never felt so much at home since she left Virginia. I have had a talk with your brother, and it is practically settled that we take a two years’ lease of Achree. I was fortunate in finding Cattanach here to-day also, and so the thing can be put on a proper basis without delay." "Yes," said Isla, and her tone had a singularly spiritless note in it.