第754章 MISS DULANE AND MY LORD.(22)

She looked at her husband. The utterance of his name was instantly suspended on her lips. Mrs. Evelin's hand, turning cold at the same moment in her hand, warned her to look round. The face of the woman more than reflected the inconcealable agitation in the face of the man.

The wife's first words, when she recovered herself, were addressed to them both.

"Which of you can I trust," she asked, "to tell me the truth?""You can trust both of us," her husband answered.

The firmness of his tone irritated her. "I will judge of that for myself," she said. "Go back to the next room," she added, turning to Mrs. Evelin; "I will hear you separately."The companion, whose duty it was to obey--whose modesty and gentleness had won her mistress's heart--refused to retire.

"No," she said; "I have been deceived too. I have _my_ right to hear what Lord Howel has to say for himself."Beaucourt attempted to support the claim that she had advanced.

His wife sternly signed to him to be silent. "What do you mean?"she said, addressing the question to Mrs. Evelin.