“You may, or may not, be surprised to know that my husband is your stepbrother, Adrian Vance. He informed me of this fact not long ago, indeed before we were married, but I found I loved him well enough to forgive his humble ancestry, even though in marrying him I was forced to claim kinship with you! We are, therefore, by stretching a point, sisters-in-law, and it is quite likely that, after all, we may meet again.” “I hope not!” said Berry, after a pause. “Amen to that!” answered Charles. “But we seem to be fated to meet that woman, in one way or another, wherever we go! I wonder how she found out that we are here?” “She must have seen, in the newspapers, notices of the sale of Thetford Towers.” “Of course! And probably she will expect us to ask them to visit us, in her new capacity as sister-in-law! Oh, she is quite capable of that! Especially now that father is dead. Well, she will be woefully disappointed, if _we_ have anything to say about it!” Berry smiled. “We may have less to say than we think, dear; the matter may be taken quite out of our hands by Rosalind herself. I foresee trouble. Another thing: Adrian is a mere adventurer, a gambler, and if he married her only for her money, how long do you suppose that will last?” “What a worldly-wise little pessimist you are, dear!” responded Charles, with a laugh. “Come, tear up this insulting troublesome letter, and let’s drive over to the Towers. What’s the use of vexing ourselves with a mere chance that may not occur for a dozen years?” This easy-going philosophy proved to be the wrong one, for they heard again from Rosalind, two years later. This time it was to announce the birth of a daughter, who was to be named Dora. Why Rosalind had taken the trouble to send this announcement to the Bonairs, in spite of their continued indifference to her existence, was not clear to Berry, who merely remarked: “I suppose she has reasons of her own.” But Charles saw through this move clearly enough. He readily guessed that Rosalind and her husband had not given up hope of being received at Thetford Towers; all the more now, for the sake of their daughter, Berry’s niece, and also because their fortunes were known to be on the wane. His understanding was aided by reports of Adrian’s reckless speculations which he had heard from time to time, during his occasional visits in London. On one of these occasions, he had, unknown to Berry, received a letter from Adrian Vance, requesting the loan of a large sum of money with which to pay several importunate creditors; and he had even gone so far as to lend Adrian half the amount, hoping thereby to avoid further difficulties with the Vance family. In this hope he was destined to be disappointed; for Adrian suddenly appeared at Thetford Towers, early in the following summer, and sought an interview with Charles and Berry.