Did they come from Blanden? A blissful suspicion told her so, she believed to find reminiscences of their conversations in some of the verses. Had he not spoken of the solitude of his woods, and did not the first verse begin with an allusion to it?-- "Without thee darling I am lonely, All the light of life doth die, All my heaven is in thee only, No star is in th' eternal sky Save thou smile and bid me see, Save thou come and bide with me." She imagined she heard Blanden's soft mellifluous voice in the melody of these lines; but why did he not come? She would gladly have let her eyes shine upon him. Bolder was the last poem! It spoke of the lotus-flower. Blanden had been in India, the exotic colouring of the lines possessed a warmth such as only personal experience can impart: "A god of Hindoo dreams, Cradled in the lotus-flower, Then enchanted it would seem By a goddess' magic power; And wert thou my goddess true I should be enchanted too." In spite of the oriental figurative language, the meaning of these lines was not incomprehensible; they were from Blanden. They must have originated from him, and mentally Lori composed the anti-strophe-- "Let the lotus shed its perfume, Tarry not in lover's pain, In the castle of Kulmitten I will as your goddess reign." And if Blanden were the author, the sender of these exotic nosegays, nothing but delicate consideration could restrain him from seeking her! He indeed knew where the lotus-flower bloomed, but could he know how he should be received? He must show some regard for the mistress' character, upon which her existence depends. He had no pretext for such a visit; he had no little daughter to introduce. Oh, she understood him thoroughly, and she respected him the more, the more she understood him. She considered long what pretext she could find for a meeting; she made plans, and rejected them again. At last she decided upon her favourite weapon, a pink note--an anonymous pink note! He was discreet, she might trust him, there was nothing remarkable about a chance meeting in the confectioner's shop; but the reason? This was of less importance; once she was seated before him, all doubts must vanish. These lines, these flowers, and the look in his eyes, a single pregnant word--and the enigma would be solved with magic speed. The pink note merely contained the words, "a lady begs for your advice and help," also the place and the hour of the assignation. Blanden was on friendly terms with Reising; she, without male support since her brother-in-law's departure, had she not every right to turn to him, and her doing so would enlighten him.