paused until the waiter, who had bustled up again with a bottle of champagne had filled their respective glasses and retired. 

 "And as we have become friends," he continued, "don't you think you can tell me how you have managed to get yourself into this—what shall we call it—scrape? I am not asking just out of mere curiosity. I should like to help you if I can. You see I am always in scrapes myself, so I might be able to give you some good advice." 

 The gleam of fun in his eyes, and the friendly way in which he spoke, seemed to take away much of his companion's nervousness. She sipped her champagne, looking at him over the top of the glass with a simple, almost childish gratitude. 

 "You have been kind and nice," she said frankly. "I don't know what I should have done if you hadn't been there."  She put down her glass.  "You see," she went on in a slower and more hesitating way, "I—I came up to London this evening to stay with an old governess of mine who has a flat in Long Acre. When I got there I found she had gone away, and then I didn't know what to do, because I hadn't brought any money with me." 

 "Wasn't she expecting you?" asked Tony. 

 Miss "Isabel Francis" shook her head.  "No-o," she admitted.  "You see I hadn't time to write and tell her I was coming."  She paused.  "I—I left home rather in a hurry," she added naïvely. 

 Tony leaned back in his chair and looked at her with a smile. He was enjoying himself immensely. 

 "And our two yellow-faced friends in evening-dress," he asked.  "Were they really old acquaintances of yours?" 

 The frightened, hunted look flashed back into her eyes.  "No, no," she said quickly.  "I had never seen them before in my life. I had just left the flats when they came up and spoke to me. They were both strangers—quite absolutely strangers." 

 She spoke eagerly, as though specially anxious that her words should carry conviction, but somehow or other Tony felt a little sceptical. He couldn't forget the fierce persistence of the two men, which seemed quite out of keeping with the idea that they had been interrupted in a mere piece of wanton impertinence. Besides, if what she said about them were true it would hardly account for her unreasoning terror that they might have followed her to the restaurant. Being polite by nature, however, he was careful to show no sign of doubting her 

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