She saw that he wrote only from civility,
without interest; and there was nothing to indicate his state of mind.
Susie and her companion had made up their minds to pass some weeks in
Rome; and here, to her astonishment, Susie had news of Haddo and his
wife. It appeared that they had spent some time there, and the little
English circle was talking still of their eccentricities. They travelled
in some state, with a courier and a suite of servants; they had taken a
carriage and were in the habit of driving every afternoon on the Pincio.
Haddo had excited attention by the extravagance of his costume, and
Margaret by her beauty; she was to be seen in her box at the opera every
night, and her diamonds were the envy of all beholders. Though people had
laughed a good deal at Haddo's pretentiousness, and been exasperated by
his arrogance, they could not fail to be impressed by his obvious wealth.
But finally the pair had disappeared suddenly without saying a word to
anybody. A good many bills remained unpaid, but these, Susie learnt, had
been settled later.
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