At length she
found herself able to meet his glance without fear, even to try and
read its character. She thought of the day when her mother told her
of his wickedness. Since then she had made acquaintance with
wickedness in various forms, and now she marvelled at the way in
which she had regarded him. 'I was a child, a child,' she repeated
to herself. Thinking thus, she lost none of his words. He spoke of
the things which interested her most deeply; how much he could teach
her, were such teaching possible!
At last she ventured upon a personal question.
'How is Mrs. Eldon?'
She thought he looked at her gratefully; certainly there was a deep
kindness in his eyes, a look which was one of the new things she
noted in him.
'Very much as when you knew her,' he replied. 'Weaker, I fear. I
have just spent a few days at Agworth.'
Doubtless he had often been at Agworth; perchance he was there, so
close by, in some of the worst hours of her misery.
When the ladies withdrew Mrs. Boscobel seated herself by Adela for a
moment.
'So you really knew Mr. Eldon?'
'Yes, but it is some time since I saw him,' Adela replied simply,
smiling in the joy of being so entirely mistress of herself.
'You were talking pictures, I heard. You can trust him there; his
criticism is admirable.
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