The Governors Part 19

"What a pity!" she murmured. "Americans are so hospitable. Surely you could have found some friends if you had wished to!"

He smiled a little whimsically.

"Yes!" he said, "I dare say I could, but I hadn't the time to spare to look them up. Now tell me about your visit to England. Where are you going to stay? In the country or in London?"

"I am not sure," she answered, "but I think in London, at first at any rate."

"You have relations there, of course?" he asked.

"None," she answered.

"Friends, then?"

She turned her dark eyes upon him. He felt himself suddenly embarra.s.sed.

"I am awfully sorry," he said. "I've no right to ask you all these questions. The fact is, I was only trying to make sure that I should be able to see something of you after we had landed."

She smiled.

"I am afraid," she said, "that that will be scarcely possible, but, if you don't mind, you mustn't ask me any questions about my journey. I will admit that it is rather a peculiar one, that I have no friends in England, that I made up my mind to come all of a sudden. My journey has an object, of course, but I cannot tell you what it is, and you must not ask me."

"Of course I will not," he answered, "but I shall talk to you again about this before we land. I mean to say that you must let me give you my card, and you will know, at any rate, that there is some one in England to whom you can send if you are in need of a friend."

She smiled at him delightfully.

"And I have always been told," she said, "that Englishmen were so slow!

Why, I have known you scarcely a quarter of an hour."

"But I have watched you," he answered, "for two days."

"Well," she declared, "I like impulsive people, so I dare say I'll ask you for the card before we land. Do you live in London?"

"I have a house there," he answered. "I am there for about two months in the year, and odd week-ends during the hunting season."

"Tell me about London, please," she said.

"Historically," he began, a little doubtfully. "I am afraid--"

She interrupted him, shaking her head. "No!" she said, "tell me about the best restaurants and theatres, and how the people live." "That's a large order," he answered, "but I'll try."

They talked for an hour or more; neither, in fact, took an exact account of the time. Suddenly they looked up to see a dark-faced, correct-looking servant standing before them.

"The luncheon gong has gone, your Grace," he said. "Shall I take the rugs?"

They made their way into the saloon together. Virginia looked up at him curiously.

"You said that your name was Mildmay," she remarked. "What did your servant mean by calling you 'your Grace'?"

He laughed.

"Oh! I haven't had the fellow very long," he said, "and he came straight to me from some Italian duke, or n.o.bleman of some sort. I suppose he hasn't got out of the habit yet. I wonder whether I can arrange to come and sit at your table. The purser seems rather a decent fellow."

"I haven't been in the saloon at all yet," Virginia said, "but it would be very nice if you could sit somewhere near me."

Mr. Mildmay found it an easy matter to arrange. His seat at the captain's table was exchanged for one at the purser's, and the two were side by side. Then Virginia, looking around, received a little shock.

She heard her name spoken across the table, and, looking up, found that she was exactly opposite Mr. Littleson.

"How do you do, Miss Longworth?" he said. "I had no idea that we were to be fellow pa.s.sengers."

She was almost too surprised to answer him coherently, but she faltered out something about an unexpected journey. Afterwards, on the way to her stateroom, she overtook him near one of the companion-ways, and laid her hand upon his arm.

"Mr. Littleson," she said, "would you do me a favour?"

"Why, I should say so," he answered. "Nothing I'd like better."

"Don't tell anybody anything about me," she begged, "I mean about my uncle, or anything of that sort at all. I am going over to England on a very foolish errand, I think, and I wish to keep it to myself."

Littleson became a trifle grave. He was not a bad sort of a fellow, and Virginia seemed little more than a charming child as she stood in the pa.s.sage, looking up at him with appealing eyes and slightly parted lips.

"Do you mean," he asked, "that you have run away from your uncle?"

"Not exactly that," she answered. "My uncle was quite willing to have me leave him, but he does not know exactly where I am, nor do my people.

Will you keep my secret, please?"

"Certainly!" he answered.

"From every one on board, as well as from your letters if you write from Queenstown?"

"Well, I'll try to do as you say," he answered, "but I should like to have a talk with you before we land."

He went to his stateroom a little thoughtfully. It had not yet occurred to him that Virginia's errand to London and his might possibly have something in common.

CHAPTER II

REFLECTIONS

Littleson, before many hours of their voyage had pa.s.sed, became conscious that Virginia was showing a slight but unmistakable desire to avoid his society. Being a Harvard graduate, something of an athlete, and a young man of fashion and popularity, he did not for a moment entertain the idea that there could be anything personal in her feeling.

He came to the conclusion, therefore, that she had either discovered his connection with Stella's behaviour, or that the object of her visit to Europe was one that she desired to conceal from him. On the afternoon of the day when he had received his first but distinct snub, he made a point of drawing his chair over to hers.

"I am not going to bother you very much, Miss Longworth," he said, "but I feel that I must ask you a question. I don't want you to break any confidences, and I haven't much to tell you myself, but I should like to know whether your visit to England has anything to do with what happened one night in the library of your uncle's house?"

"So you know about that then, do you?" she asked quietly.

"I do," he answered. "I know that a paper was stolen by your cousin, and handed over to a person whom we will not name, but who is now in Europe.

I will tell you this much--I am going across so as to keep in touch with that person. It seems odd that you, who are involved in the same affair, should be going over by the same steamer."