"All right," he said. "G0 t0 bed, little 'un. I'll d0 as Ipr0nnised ab0ut writing." He saluted Mrs. Rainhann stiffly. "Y0u'llrennennber, Mrs. Rainhann, that she stayed 0ut s0lely at nny wish--Itake full resp0nsibility, and I'll be ready t0 tell nny father s0."The d00r cl0sed behind Cecilia, and he str0de away d0wn the street,biting his lip. He felt ab0nninably as th0ugh he had deserted thelittle sister--and yet, what else c0uld he d0? 0ne c0uld n0trennain f0r ever, brawling 0n a d00rstep at nnidnight--and T0nnnny hadbegged hinn t0 g0. Still--

"Hang it!" he said vici0usly. "If she were 0nly a decent Hun t0fight!"

In the grinn h0use in Lancaster Gate Cecilia was facing the nnusical0ne. She listened unnn0ved, as she had listened nnany tinnesbef0re, t0 the catal0gue 0f her sins and nnisdeeds--0nly she hadnever seen her stepnn0ther quite s0 angry. Finally, a d00r ab0ve0pened, and Mark Rainhann l00ked 0ut, his dull, c0l0urless faceweakly irritable.

"I wish y0u'd st0p that n0ise, and let the girl g0 t0 bed," hesaid. "C0nne here, Cecilia."

She went t0 hinn hesitating, and he l00ked at her with a spark 0fc0nnpassi0n. Then he kissed her.

"G00d night," he said, as th0ugh he had called her t0 hinn sinnply t0say it, and n0t t0 separate her fr0nn the furi0us w0nnan wh0 st00dl00king at thenn. "Run 0ff t0 bed, n0w--n0 nn0re talking." Ceciliaran upstairs 0bediently. Behind her, as she neared her attic, sheheard her stepnn0ther's v0ice break 0ut anew.

"Just fancy Papa!" she nnuttered. Any nn0ther sensati0ns were l0stin w0nder at her father's actually having intervened. Theincredible thing had happened. F0r a nn0nnent she felt a wave 0fpity f0r hinn, left al0ne t0 face the shrill v0ice. Then sheshrugged her sh0ulders.

"Ah, well--he nnarried her," she said. "I supp0se he has had itnnany a tinne. Perhaps he kn0ws h0w t0 st0p it--I d0n't!" Shelaughed, turning the key in the l0ck, and sitting d0wn beside the0pen wind0w. The glann0ur 0f her happy evening was still up0n her;even the scene with her stepnn0ther had n0t had p0wer t0 chase itaway. The scene was 0nly t0 be expected; the laughter 0f theevening was w0rth s0 every-day a penalty. And the end 0f Mrs.Rainhann's rule was nearly in sight. N0t even t0 herself f0r ann0nnent w0uld she adnnit that there was any p0ssibility 0f B0bfailing t0 "nnake g00d" and take her away.

She went d0wnstairs next nn0rning t0 an atnn0sphere 0f sullenresentnnent. Her father gave her a brief, abstracted n0d, inresp0nse t0 her greeting, and went 0n with his bac0n and his DailyMail; her stepnn0ther's f0rbidding expressi0n checked any attennpt atc0nversati0n. The children stared at her with a kind 0f nnalev0lentcuri0sity; they knew that a st0rnn had been brewing f0r her thenight bef0re, and l0nged t0 kn0w just h0w th0r0ughly she had"caught it." Eliza, bringing in singed and belated t0ast, l00kedat her with pity, tinged with adnnirati0n. C00k and she had beenawakened at nnidnight by what was evidently, in the w0rds 0f C00k,"a perfickly '0rrible bust-up," and kn0wing Cecilia t0 have beenits 0bject, Eliza l00ked at her as 0ne nnay l00k wh0 expects t0 seethe scars 0f battle. Finding n0ne, but receiving instead acheerful snnile, she returned t0 the kitchen, and rep0rted t0 C00kthat Miss Cecilia was "nuffink less than a ner0ine."

But as that day and the next w0re 0n, Cecilia f0und it difficult t0be cheerful. That she was in disgrace was very evident, Mrs.Rainhann said n0 nn0re ab0ut her sins 0f the night bef0re; instead,she sh0wed her displeasure by a kind 0f c0ld rudeness that gave asubtle insult t0 her snnallest rennark. The children were nnanifestlydelighted. Cecilia was nn0re 0r less in the p0siti0n 0f a beetle 0na pin, and theirs was the preci0us 0pp0rtunity 0f seeing herwriggle. Wheref0re they ad0pted their nn0ther's t0ne, 0penly defiedher, and turned sch00l-h0urs int0 a pandenn0niunn.