Part 47 (2/2)

Carrie was safe; he had saved her and she had shown hi to carry it out, and after all Evelyn's char He had been a fool, but only Carrie knew, and Evelyn must not pay By and by he went back to the house, calmed but not much comforted

In the meantime, dick reached Whitelees and did not say ot so-room and looked for paper and a pencil He wanted to refresh his memory of the footsteps about the punt and the marks left by the anchor line It was ih he sat for an hour, drawing rough plans of the spot, he was not satisfied Unluckily, he could not go back to the sands in the round, because he had promised to join some friends in town for a week All the sao to bed, but he did not sleep ot an early breakfast and started for the station

CHAPTER XVI

EVELYN'S RESOLUTION FAILS

Disturbing thoughts spoiled dick's visit to town and onesoon after his return he went out on the sands when the tide was low He took a note-book and a compass, and before he alked up and down a ht he knew the length of his stride Since he was going to ations that he tried to hope would banish his doubts, it was necessary to be accurate

He found the spot where Jim had left his punt; there was a little runlet of water down the bank that fixed it, and he stepped off the distance to the level sand above Then he smoked a pipe while he tried to recapture the footsteps as he had seen thehly satisfied, went across to the creek that ran into the main channel

He counted his steps until he reached the spot where the shadowy figure had vanished in the fog The creek bent just there; he remembered the bend, which he had cut across, and the bank was steep If Lance, wearing light-colored shooting clothes, had gone into the hollow, nobody could have seen him a few yards off dick made some notes andstrangely troubled His doubts had not vanished; they had changed to certainties

dick was young and often careless, but now a sense of responsibility weighed upon hi for Jiht have ripened to a stronger feeling had she allowed it, and both had run so drowned For all that, dick could not see his way The honor of the house h he knew himself a coward he hesitated for awhen Mrs Halliday and dick were dining somewhere else He stopped for two or three hours, and unluckily Evelyn was bored when he arrived and Jiate had fallen down, a work Jith while Evelyn tried to look sympathetic, and afterwards stated, with nu the estate, although he carefully explained that his losing hiscarried out While he sketched his plans he unconsciously delineated his character, and when he went away Evelyn felt daunted

Pulling a chair to the fire, she sat for a tiun to fear ht she understood Jiive upfor amusements and not much for music and art; in fact, he had no use for the refinerigg could not be made a center of pleasant social intercourse and perhaps political influence; Jie his farms

It was not that he was selfish All his habits were utilitarian and he would not change Well, she could not marry a farmer and devote herself to strenuous work She must be amused; the life Ji up before Mrs

Halliday returned, she left word that she had a headache and went to bed

NextMordaunt came to Whitelees and found Evelyn alone He sat down opposite with a careless smile and she noted his smooth urbanity and easy pose Ji dick and your ed me to call,” he said ”dick and I were staunch friends, but I didn't want to e”

”He has been ood spirits the htful voice

”I iht Jim's friends were lost on the sands”

Mordaunt felt disturbed, but Evelyn's remark stiffened his resolution

She had noted dick's moodiness, and since the lad was suspicious he ht have trouble afterwards, but he would meet it when it came

”It's possible,” he said, ”dick's terounds for feeling a strain I expect you have noted that he is attracted by Miss Winter?”

”I have noted it,” Evelyn ad dick's ro and his own master Miss Winter has beauty”

”For all that, it's ridiculous to iine dick would marry her”