"I thought so. And it's like Edward to bring you and sneak off in that
fashion."

Mrs. Blandford gave a quick sigh of relief. Demorest's flight had been
mistaken for her husband's habitual evasion. Knowing that her mother
would not refer to the subject again, she did not reply, but slowly
mounted the dark staircase with an assumption of more than usual
hesitating precaution, in order to recover her equanimity.


The clocks were striking eleven when she left her mother's house and
re-entered her own. She was surprised to find a light burning in the
kitchen, and Ezekiel, their hired man, awaiting her in a dominant and
nasal key of religious and practical disapprobation. "Pity you wern't
tu hum afore, ma'am, considerin' the doins that's goin' on in perfessed
Christians' houses arter meetin' on the Sabbath Day."

"What's the difficulty now, Ezekiel?" said Mrs. Blandford, who had
regained her rigorous precision once more under the decorous security of
her own roof.

"Wa'al, here comes an entire stranger axin for Squire Blandford. And
when I tells he warn't tu hum--"

"Not at home?" interrupted Mrs. Blandford, with a slight start. "I left
him here."

"Mebbee so, but folks nowadays don't 'pear to keer much whether they
break the Sabbath or not, trapsen' raound town in and arter meetin'
hours, ez if 'twor gin'ral tranin' day--and hez gone out agin."