on Wednesday evening." She enjoyed this exhibition of power. She saw
Laura and Christine glance at each other. But they were not dismayed;
they saw at once that Max had not been playing his hand alone; he was
going not entirely on his own initiative, and that was encouraging.

Riatt, who perfectly understood the public protectorate that was thus
established over him, resented it; in fact by the time they rose from the
table, he was thoroughly disgusted with all of them--weary, as he said to
himself of their hideous little games. He hardened his heart even as
Pharaoh did, and he felt not the least hesitation in according Laura the
promised interview, for the reason that he felt no doubt of his own
powers of resistance.

He permitted himself to be ostentatiously led away, upstairs to her
little private sitting-room, with its books, and fireplace, and signed
photographs, and he pretended not to see Nancy Almar's glance, which was
almost a wink, and might have been occasioned by the fact that she
herself was at the same moment gently guiding Wickham in the direction of
a card-table.

Laura made her cousin very comfortable, in a long chair by the fire, with
his cigarettes and his coffee beside him on a little table, and then she
began murmuring:

"Isn't it a pity Nancy Almar is so poisonous at times! She isn't really
bad hearted, but anything connected with Christine has always roused her
jealousy--the old beauty and the new one, I suppose."

"I wonder," said Riatt, "what is the difference, if any, between a pirate
and a bucaneer? Miss Fenimer and Mrs. Almar seem to me to have many