258 The Real Charlotte. 



you to help me with a very painful bit of work that I was 

 just at when you came." 



They had been standing in the passage, and Charlotte's 

 eyes darted towards the half-open door of Mrs. Lambert's 

 room. 



" You're settling her things, I suppose ? " she said, her 

 voice treading eagerly upon the heels of his ; " is it that you 

 want me to help you with ? " 



He led the way into the room without answering, and 

 indicated its contents with a comprehensive sweep of his 

 hand. 



" I turned the key in this door myself when I came back 

 from the funeral, and not a thing in it has been touched 

 since. Now I must set to work to try and get the things 

 sorted, to see what I should give away, and what I should 

 keep, and what should be destroyed," he said, his voice re- 

 suming its usual business tone, tinged with just enough 

 gloom to mark his sense of the situation. 



Charlotte peeled off her black gloves and stuffed them 

 into her pocket. *' Sit down, my poor fellow, sit down, and 

 I'll do it all," she said, stripping an arm-chair of its sheet 

 and dragging it to the window ; ^' this is no fit work for 

 you." 



There was no need to press this view upon Lambert ; he 

 dropped easily into the chair provided for him, and in a 

 couple of minutes the work was under weigh. 



" Light your pipe now and be comfortable," said Char- 

 lotte, issuing from the wardrobe with an armful of clothes 

 and laying them on the bed; "there's work here for the 

 rest of the morning." She took up a black satin skirt and 

 held it out in front of her ; it had been Mrs. Lambert's 

 " Sunday best," and it seemed to Lambert as though he 

 could hear his wife's voice asking anxiously if he thought 

 the day was fine enough for her to wear it. " Now what 

 would you wish done with this ? " said Charlotte, looking at 

 it fondly, and holding the band against her own waist to see 

 the length. " It's too good to give to a servant." 



Lambert turned his head away. There was a crudeness 

 about this way of dealing that was a little jarring at first. 



" I don't know what's to be done with it," he said, with 

 all a man's helpless dislike of such details. 



