The Real Charlotte, 357 



said she did her utmost to capture you ! and I can very well 

 believe it of her ; a grievous waste of ammunition on her 

 part, wasn't it, Pamela? Though it did not result in an 

 engagement r^ she added, highly pleased at being able to 

 press a pun into her argument. 



" Oh, I think she spared Christopher," struck in Pamela 

 with a conciliatory laugh ; " * Poor is the conquest of the 

 timid hare,' you know ! " She was aware of something 

 portentously rigid in her brother's attitude, and would have 

 given much to have changed the conversation, but the situa- 

 tion was beyond her control. 



^' I don't think she would have thought it such a poor 

 conquest," said Lady Dysart indignantly ; " a girl like that, 

 accustomed to attorneys' clerks and commercial travellers 

 — she'd have done anything short of suicide for such a 

 chance ! " 



Christopher had stood silent during this discussion. He 

 was losing his temper, but he was doing it after his fashion, 

 slowly and almost imperceptibly. The pity for Mr. Lam- 

 bert's wife, that had been a primary result of Charlotte's 

 indictment, flamed up into quixotism, and every word his 

 mother said was making him more hotly faithful to the time 

 when his conquest had been complete. 



" I daresay it will surprise you to hear that I gave her the 

 chance, and she didn't take it," he said suddenly. 



Lady Dysart grasped the arms of her chair, and then fell 

 back into it. 



""yb^^did!" 



"Yes, I did," replied Christopher, beginning to walk 

 towards the door. He knew he had done a thing that was 

 not only superfluous, but savoured repulsively of the pseudo- 

 heroic, and the attitude in which he had placed himself was 

 torture to his reserve. ^' This great honour was offered to 

 her," he went on, taking refuge in lame satire, "last August, 

 unstimulated by any attempts at suicide on her part, and 

 she refused it. I — I think it would be kinder if you put 

 her down as a harmless lunatic, than as an adventuress, as 

 far as I am concerned." He shut the door behind him as 

 he finished speaking, and Lady Dysart was left staring at 

 her daughter, complexity of emotions making speech an 

 idle thing. 



