"Ah! jealous, of course. He is always de trop, that great, stupid George," my lady said. "And was the dinner-party agreeable; and what time did you get home?"
"The dinner-party was delightful, and I came home shortly after midnight. What time Sir Galahad arrived I can't say--half an hour before I did, at least."
Lady Kingsland looked inquiringly.
"Did you not ride Sir Galahad?"
"Yes, until I was torn from the saddle! My dear mother, I met with an adventure last night, and you had like never to see your precious son again."
"Everard!"
"Quite true. But for the direct interposition of Providence, in the shape of a handsome lad in velveteen, who shot my assailant, I would be lying now in Brithlow Wood yonder, as dead as any Kingsland in the family vault."
And then, while Lady Kingsland gazed at him breathlessly, Sir Everard related his midnight adventure.
"Good heavens!" my lady cried, clasping him in her arms. "Oh, to think what might have happened! My boy--my boy!"
"Very true, mother; but a miss is as good as a mile, you know. Poetical justice befell my assailant; and here I am safe and sound, sipping chocolate."
"And the preserver of your life, Everard--where is he?"
"Upstairs, waiting like patience on a monument; and by the same token, fasting all this time! But it isn't a he, ma mère; it's a she."
"What?"
Sir Everard laughed.
"Such a mystified face, mother! Oh; it's highly sensational and melodramatic, I promise you! Sit down and hear the sequel."
And then, eloquently and persuasively, Sir Everard repeated Miss Sybilla Silver's extraordinary story, and Lady Kingsland was properly shocked.
"Disguised herself in men's clothes! My dear Everard, what a dreadful creature she must be!"
"Not at all dreadful, mother. She is as sensitive and womanly a young lady as ever I saw in my life. And, she's a very pretty girl, too."
Lady Kingsland looked suspiciously at her son. She highly disapproved of pretty girls where he was concerned; but the handsome face was frank and open as the day.
"Now don't be suspicious, Lady Kingsland. I'm not going to fall in love with Miss Sybilla Silver, I give you my word and honor. She saved my life, remember. May I not fetch her here?"
"What! in men's clothes, and before your sister? Everard, how dare you?"
Sir Everard broke into a peal of boyish laughter that made the room ring.
"I don't believe she's in men's clothes!" exclaimed Mildred, suddenly. "Honorine told me robbers must have been in my dressing-room last night--half my things were stolen. I understand it now--Everard was the robber."