"Very cleverly managed, what?" whispered Bundle to Loraine. "Congratulations on our girlish tact." The round ended just before one o'clock, victory going to Bateman and Loraine. "But I think you'll agree with me, partner," said Mr. O'Rourke, "that we played a more sporting game." He lagged a little behind with Bundle. "Old Pongo's a cautious player--he takes no risks. Now, with me it's neck or nothing. And a fine motto through life, don't you agree, Lady Eileen?" "Hasn't it ever landed you in trouble?" asked Bundle, laughing. "To be sure it has. Millions of times. But I'm still going strong. Sure, it'll take the hangman's noose to defeat Terence O'Rourke." Just then Jimmy Thesiger strolled round the corner of the house. "Bundle, by all that's wonderful!" he exclaimed. "You've missed competing in the Autumn Meeting," said O'Rourke. "I'd gone for a stroll," said Jimmy. "Where did these girls drop from?" "We came on our flat feet," said Bundle. "The Hispano let us down." And she narrated the circumstances of the breakdown. Jimmy listened with sympathetic attention. "Hard luck," he vouchsafed. "If it's going to take some time, I'll run you back in my car after lunch." A gong sounded at that moment and they all went in. Bundle observed Jimmy covertly. She thought she had noticed an unusual note of exultance in his voice. She had the feeling that things had gone well. After lunch they took a polite leave of Lady Coote, and Jimmy volunteered to run them down to the garage in his car. As soon as they had started the same word burst simultaneously from both girls' lips: "Well?" Jimmy chose to be provoking. "Well?" "Oh, pretty hearty, thanks. Slight indigestion owing to over indulgence in dry biscuits." "But what has happened?" "I tell you. Devotion to the cause made me eat too many dry biscuits. But did our hero flinch? No, he did not." "Oh, Jimmy," said Loraine reproachfully, and he softened. "What do you really want to know?" "Oh, everything. Didn't we do it well? I mean, the way we kept Pongo and Terence O'Rourke in play." "I congratulate you on the handling of Pongo. O'Rourke was probably a sitter--but Pongo is made of other stuff. There's only one word for that lad--it was in the _Sunday Newsbag_ cross-word last week. Word of ten letters meaning everywhere at once. Ubiquitous. That describes Pongo down to the ground. You can't go anywhere without running into him--and the worst of it is you never hear him coming." "You think he's dangerous?" "Dangerous? Of course he's not dangerous. Fancy Pongo being dangerous. He's an ass. But, as I said just now, he's an ubiquitous ass. He doesn't even seem to need sleep like ordinary mortals. In fact, to put it bluntly, the fellow's a damned nuisance." And, in a somewhat aggrieved manner, Jimmy described the events of the previous evening. Bundle was not very sympathetic. "I don't know what you think you're doing anyway, mouching round here."