"Freezing," answered Char, with a violent shiver. "Better go to bed," said the doctor, without looking at her, as he went upstairs. Char, still in her fur coat, hung over the fire. "Tell me what's happened, Johnnie." "Cousin Joanna says that he was very restless and low-spirited last night--talked about the war, you know, and this last air-raid. And when he came down this morning he suddenly turned giddy and fell across the hall sofa. Luckily it wasn't on the floor. Cousin Joanna was with him, and they got him flat on the sofa, and sent for Clark. I got here about the same time as he did, by pure chance--came over for a day's shooting, you know--and between us we carried him upstairs. By Jove! he's no light weight for a man of his years, either." "What does Dr. Clark think?" "That he'll probably recover consciousness in a day or two. But even then--don't be frightened, Char; it's only what generally happens in these cases--his--his words probably won't come quite right, you know. He may speak, but not quite normally." Char smiled a little at her cousin's look of anxious solicitude for the effect of his surmises upon her. "I'm not without hospital experience, you know," she said gently. "It's the left side of the brain, then? Is his right side paralyzed?" "I'm afraid so--arm and hand, you know. We shall see what Prince says." There was a pause, and Char said hoarsely: "I wonder if I ought to go up?" "Is that you, Miss Vivian?" came the voice of Miss Bruce from the stairs. Char turned and went slowly up to her. Trevellyan did not see her again that evening, and Miss Bruce told him later, with rather a reproachful look, that poor Miss Vivian was not fit to be up. "It was a shock to her, I'm afraid." "Yes--oh yes; but she really was dreadfully ill when she went out this morning. She ought never, never to have been allowed to leave the house." "You don't mean to say she's going to be ill too?" exclaimed Trevellyan in tones of dismay. He was thinking that Joanna had enough anxiety as it was; but Miss Bruce attributed his tones entirely to concern on behalf of her adored Miss Vivian, and looked at him more amiably. "I'm afraid it's influenza, but a couple of days in bed will make all the difference, and now that, of course, there's no question of her leaving the house, she'll be able to take care of herself for once." "There she is," said Captain Trevellyan, and strode across the hall to meet his Cousin Joanna and the doctor. Miss Bruce waited to hear Dr. Prince's verdict, and then went quietly up to Char's room, with offers of service that aroused the unconcealed wrath of Char's devoted maid. "I don't want anything," Miss Vivian declared wearily. "As soon as I know whether I may see father, I can go to bed--or go up to him, as the case may be. But I suppose my mother means to come down to me some time?" There was more than a hint of resentment in her wearied voice.