"Who--who----? Have they found out who did it?"
"No," broke in Celia, swiftly and tremulously. "No one has been
discovered. Mr. Jacobs, the detective, said that no one will be
discovered. The jewels have been found."
"I know," murmured Miriam.
"There will be no more trouble," whispered Celia, soothingly.
Again there was a pause, then Miriam asked brokenly, "Heyton--my husband?"
"He has gone abroad," said Celia, hanging her head; "he will be away
some time."
Miriam's lips moved; she whispered, at last, "I understand!--I must leave here--at once. I will go back to my people
or hide myself somewhere in London."
"Oh, go back to your people," said Celia. "I--I want to tell you how
sorry the Marquess, all of us, are for you, how deeply we sympathise
with your loss; it weighs upon us all."
"It need not do," said Miriam, with a touch of bitterness. "I have
always been a stranger and an alien here. Strangely enough, Celia, I
have felt as if I--I have been walking on quicksand that might swallow
me up at any moment. Oh, I have been as unhappy as I deserve. All the
time, I have felt a sense of--of--oh, I can't explain; but it seemed to
me as if my treachery to Derrick would come back on me. And it has! If
you knew"--she shuddered--"but I can't tell you. I shall never open my
lips--I want to go at once. Yes; I am quite strong enough. I want to go
away from here--from you all. I want to be at rest, somewhere where I
can try to forget. What a downfall! What a downfall!"
Celia, with the tears in her eyes, put her arm round the trembling form.
"Dear Lady Heyton," she murmured, "you must not give way. It may not be
all as black as you think. And--and Derrick wishes me to tell you that
your future--oh, how am I to put it!--that you will be well cared for;
that you will have no need for anxiety about the future."
"Derrick!" breathed Miriam, ashamedly. "Yes, it is what he would do. It
is like him to think of me, even in the moment of his own happiness. Oh,
God, how ashamed I am!"
"You will not refuse--to let them help you, to let them look after you?"
pleaded Celia.
"No," replied Miriam, with a bitter laugh. "I'll take their charity
thankfully enough. It's part of my punishment, I suppose. But I want to
go at once. You seem to pity me----"