his shoulder. 'I believe I _have_ a little taste that way; those are all
real, you know, those jewels.'

'Oh, yes! of course. Have you seen it, Captain Lake?' And he placed it in
that gentleman's fingers, who now took his turn at the lamp, and
contemplated the little parallelogram with a gleam of sly amusement.

'What are you laughing at?' asked Wylder, a little snappishly.

'I was thinking it's very like the ace of hearts,' answered the captain
softly, smiling on.

'Fie, Lake, there's no poetry in you,' said Lord Chelford, laughing.

'Well, now, though, really it is funny; it did not strike me before, but
do you know, now, it _is_,' laughs out jolly Mrs. Dolly, 'isn't it. Look
at it, do, Mr. Wylder--isn't it like the ace of hearts?'

Wylder was laughing rather redly, with the upper part of his face very
surly, I thought.

'Never mind, Wylder, it's the winning card,' said Lord Chelford, laying
his hand on his shoulder.

Whereupon Lake laughed quietly, still looking on the ace of hearts with
his sly eyes.

And Wylder laughed too, more suddenly and noisily than the humour of the
joke seemed quite to call for, and glanced a grim look from the corners
of his eyes on Lake, but the gallant captain did not seem to perceive it;