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Long since he knew, too, that in all the world he could never again find such a mate for him This had, unadmitted even to himself, always reed, undrawn-on reserve in case of the failure which he, even in sanguine moods, knew in his inmost corrupted soul that his quest was doomed to

And now he had no aze inward, he looked upon all hich he had chosen to deceive hi left for self-deception

"If I "

"I will ot to marry somebody pretty soon You or Captain Voucher"

For an instant a vicious light flashed in his narrowing eyes She saw it and shook her head eary cynicism: "No, not that It could not attract ee,you that ; she looked at him, lazily aain

"Shall I see you to-morrow?" he demanded

"If you wish Captain Voucher came down on the same train with me I'll set him adrift if you like"

"Is he preparing for a declaration?" sneered Quarrier

"I think so," she said sione, you wait a final word from me Do you understand?" he repeated with repressed violence

"No, Howard Are you going to propose to rily "I tell you to wait I've a right to that much consideration anyway"

"Very well, Howard," she said, recognising in him the cowardice which she had always suspected to be there

She bade hiht; he touched her hand but hed a little to herself, watching hi the door, she stood still in the centre of the rooilded pier-glass, her lips edged with a sneer so like Quarrier's that, the next h froure in the glass, "I think that you are either mentally ill or inherently a kind of devil And I don't much care which"

And she turned leisurely, her slihtly on her narrow hips, and strolled into the second dressing-roo in that particular species of solitaire known as "The Idiot's Delight"