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you think he might?" Then: "No, I'm sure it'll be all right—hell want us to get on well together. No milk in my tea, thank you. I have one lump of sugar and a slice of lemon." She took the cup and sipped. "Just the way I like it! Now come and sit beside me and I'll tell you what I want you to do for me."
    Barbara perched herself on the foot of the bed. "Mr. Rockwood has already given me some idea."
    "Has he? Oh, well, if Dominic has told you I'd better not interfere."
    There was a short silence and Barbara began to feel that the man's influence over his aunt was even more insidious than she had imagined.
    "Mr. Rockwood only gave me a general outline," she said quietly, "and I'm sure there must be one or two personal things you'd like me to do which he wouldn't know about"
    "Of course, I never thought of that. Well, there isn't very much really. Just that I'd like you to put flowers in my room—Emily never has time to get them for me— and to change my library book every week, as well as one or two other little things, which I can't quite remem ber at the moment."
    "Never mind," Barbara soothed, "tell me them when you think of it."
    "Thank you, my dear, I will." And with this Aunt Ellie seemed to dismiss the subject and settled down to enjoy her first afternoon with her new companion.
    During the next few days the old lady stayed in her room except for lunch, for the long journey from Lon don had tired her, and although she recovered her spirits quite quickly her state of health was so precarious that it did not take much to bring on a condition of weakness which, Barbara found, would often last for several days. A week after their arrival in Wales Rockwood went to Hereford to buy cattle. Barbara learned of his depar ture from the housekeeper, and felt a little piqued that he had gone without informing her himself. But Aunt Ellie expressed no surprise and was obviously quite used to her nephew coming and going without a word. In his absence the house seemed to take on a different air. Aunt Ellie lost her frightened manner and became more rational, although it did not take Barbara long to discover that the old lady was very forgetful and would ramble on indefinitely unless she was gently stopped. Even the servants seemed less constrained now that their master's dominating influence was no longer felt, and Barbara could not forbear to hope that he would stay away for some time.
    At the end of a week Barbara received a short note from Rockwood, the boldness and heavy down-stroke
    of the decisive lettering bringing him vividly to mind.' Without preamble or any enquiry after their well-being, he informed her that he would be away for longer than he had expected and if for any reason she wanted him urgently she could contact him through his London club.
    Slowly the days lengthened into weeks and the routine by which Barbara lived became almost a part of her. The mornings passed quickly, for she would help Emily to sort the linen or dust the fragile ornaments in the drawing-room which was the only cheerful room in the house apart from Aunt Ellie's bedroom. Even so, it struck her as having an unlived-in air, although here too she sensed the same influence as the bedroom; the deli cate Dresden figures repeating themselves in gilded, glass-fronted cabinets, and the elaborately tasselled furniture and faded velvet curtains echoing the Ed wardian motif of the room upstairs.
    There were numerous pictures on the walls, some of them valuable, and one afternoon when Aunt Ellie was sleeping she inspected them with interest. But it was not until she turned to have a last look round that she got the impression that there was something missing, and walked back into the centre of the room, her eyes scan ning the walls.
    Suddenly she knew what it was. Over the mantelpiece a large square of wallpaper was less faded than the rest, as though a mirror or picture had once hung there, and moving closer she saw that it must have been taken down after a