"Aguilar is bound to come now!" thought Audrey. "And I am lost!" Then she added to herself: "And I don't care if I _am_ lost. What an unheard-of lark!" And to Madame Piriac she said lightly: "Well, we must explore." The blinds were nearly all up on the garden front. And one window--the French window of the drawing-room--was wide open. "The crisis will be here in one minute at the latest," thought Audrey. "Evidently Miss Moze is at home," said Madame Piriac, gazing at the house. "Yes, it is distinguished. It is what I had expected.... But ought we not to go to the front door?" "I think we ought," Audrey agreed. They went round the side of the house, into the main drive, and without hesitation Madame Piriac rang the front door bell, which they could plainly hear. "I must have my cards ready," said she, opening her bag. "One always hears how exigent you are in England about such details, even in the provinces. And, indeed, why not?" There was no answer to the bell. Madame Piriac rang again, and there was still no answer. And the dog had ceased to bark. "_Mon Dieu!_" she muttered. "Have you observed, darling, that all the blinds are down on this façade?" She rang a third time. Then, without a word, they returned slowly to the garden front. "How mysterious! _Mon Dieu!_ How English it all is!" muttered Madame Piriac. "It gives me fear." Audrey had almost decided definitely that she was saved when she happened to glance through the open window of the drawing-room. She thought she saw a flicker within. She looked again. She could not be mistaken. Then she noticed that all the dust sheets had been removed from the furniture, that the carpet had been laid, that a table had been set for tea, that there were flowers and china and a teapot and bread-and-butter and a kettle and a spirit-lamp on the table. The flicker was the flicker of the blue flame of the spirit-lamp. The kettle over it was puffing out steam. Audrey exclaimed, within herself: "Aguilar!" She had caught him at last. There were two cups and saucers--the best ancient blue-and-white china, out of the glass-fronted china cupboard in that very room! The celibate Aguilar, never known to consort with anybody at all, was clearly about to entertain someone to tea, and the aspect of things showed that he meant to do it very well. True, there was no cake, but the bread-and-butter was expertly cut and attractively arranged. Audrey felt sure that she was on the track of Aguilar's double life, and that a woman was concerned therein. She was angry, but she was also enormously amused and uplifted. She no longer cared the least bit about the imminent danger threatening her incognito. Her sole desire was to entrap Aguilar, and with deep joy she pictured his face when he should come into the room with his friend and find the mistress of the house already installed.