Eleanor nodded without speaking. She heartily wished the interview was over. "Then I implore you to tell me the reason of Cynthia's silence." "Cannot you imagine that for yourself?" began Eleanor; then, as Lane shook his head, she added: "Cynthia is overwrought, every action on Monday night seems distorted----" She again hesitated and bit her lip--"You went to look for her carriage; you were gone a long time, and when she entered the carriage her uncle was sitting there--dead." Slowly her meaning dawned on Lane. "Good God! You don't mean----?" he staggered back, his face gone white. "Yes." "And she thinks _that_! Cynthia, Cynthia, had you so little faith?" Lane's agony was pitiful. "You must not be unjust to her," cried Eleanor, her loyalty up in arms. "Remember, you had just told her of your fearful quarrel with her uncle; she had also seen you playing with a letter file when you were with her in the library----" "But, great Heavens! I didn't take that out in the street with me," exclaimed Lane passionately. "I tell you what it is, Miss Eleanor, I must see Cynthia and explain this terrible tangle. Can you help me meet her?" Eleanor considered for a moment. "I have already urged Cynthia to see you, but she has been so unnerved, so unstrung, that I could not make her see matters in a reasonable light. I think the best thing for you to do is to meet her when she least expects it." "Capital! Can you arrange such a meeting?" "My uncle, Colonel Thornton, has asked Cynthia and me to go to his house in Georgetown to-morrow and spend Sunday. I think Mrs. Winthrop will permit Cynthia to go, and, if that is the case, you can call there to-morrow night." "Good." Lane paced the walk restlessly for a minute, then returned to Eleanor's side. "It's pretty hard to wait so long before seeing her," he said, wistfully. Eleanor held out her hand. "Don't be discouraged; Cynthia loves you devotedly." "God bless you for those words!" Lane caught her hand and raised her slender fingers to his lips. "Miss Thornton," said a cold voice back of them, "Mrs. Truxton is waiting for you," and Eleanor flushed scarlet as she met Douglas' eyes. CHAPTER XIV THE MOTH AND THE FLAME Douglas brought the powerful roadster to a standstill under the _porte-cochère_ of the Carew mansion, and disentangling himself from among the levers and wheel, ran up the few steps. Before he could ring the bell the door was opened by Colonel Thornton. "Come in," he exclaimed heartily. "I saw you from the drawing-room window, and, as Joshua has gone to ask Mrs. Winthrop if she can see me, I thought I would let you in and not keep you standing outside." "Thanks, Colonel." Douglas followed the older man into the drawing-room. "Have you seen Miss Eleanor?" "No. Here, don't sit on that gilt-edged insecurity," as Douglas pulled forward a parlor chair. "This sofa is big enough to hold us both. Tell me, are there any new developments in the Carew case?"