‘I imagine I know a great deal more than you do, Signor,’ answered Miss Marjory severely; ‘and I am sure I know a great deal more than you think. I know pretty well what idea you have got in your head, and it is entirely wrong. My friend and our host, Mr. Philip Debenham, is the soul of honour. You do not and you cannot understand him. I will give you this assurance, and also this warning. Do not attempt to carry out this plan of yours, for you will never be able to do it. Give it up with a good grace whilst there is yet time, and do not bring upon yourself the ignominy of defeat.’ The dark face looked more dark than ever—more in bewilderment, it seemed, than in anger. ‘Who will defeat me?’ he asked slowly. ‘I will!’ answered Miss Marjory, with all the reckless daring of her nature. ‘You!’ he echoed, looking very hard at her. ‘Why, what can you do?’ ‘I can generally do anything I have a mind to,’ answered Miss Marjory significantly. ‘You had better not make an enemy of me.’ He still looked hard at her—as if he would read her very soul. ‘And you are a staunch supporter of—of—our host—of Philip Debenham’s?’ ‘I am,’ she answered coolly; ‘and I am as firm a friend as I am an enemy. Any cause I take up generally prospers.’ Maud’s health was now being proposed, and all private conversation had suddenly to be suspended; but when Miss Marjory sailed away with the other ladies into the drawing-room, it was with the comfortable assurance that she had made profitable use of her time, and had given Signor Pagliadini a good scare. Miss Marjory had enjoyed the dinner-party, if nobody else had. CHAPTER XV. MAUD’S DECISION. When the ladies left the dinner-table for the drawing-room, some of the old constraint seemed to fall upon the party. It was not easy for anyone bearing the name of Belassis, to be thoroughly comfortable at Ladywell under existing circumstances. Matilda and Bertha were in constant dread of what their mother might say or do next; and she, on her part, was in a state of suppressed restlessness and irritation, which she found very hard to bear. She had not heard what it was that passed between her husband and Miss Marjory at the dinner-table; but she felt convinced that there was some secret from which she was excluded, and she would gladly have questioned the guest from Whitbury, and elicited from her the desired information.