nothing. In spite of her excitement and eager anticipation shefelt herself growing drowsy, and when they at last drew up, though shehad not been actually asleep she had been so near it that all about herseemed dreamy and unreal. Hardly understanding where she was, she foundherself following her godmother across a great square hall, whose darkoak panelling was decorated with Christmas evergreens and holly, down ashort passage into a room crowded with ladies' shawls and wraps andattendant maidens.
"Shake yourself out, Ella," said Lady Cheynes. "Yes, that is right," asher god-daughter half mechanically obeyed her, under the supervision ofone of the ladies'-maids. "You are not at all crushed. Keep our cloakswhere they will be easily got at, we shall be leaving early," she wenton to the woman, who evidently recognised her. "Now, Ella, my dear.But for goodness' sake, child, don't look so solemn. No one wouldrecognise you."
"I--I didn't mean to look solemn, godmother," said the girl, glancing upin the old lady's face with a little smile of deprecation in her lovelyeyes.
At that instant a young man hastily crossing the hall, just behind them,caught sight of her. He stopped short and hesitated.
"By Jove!" he ejaculated under his breath, then drew back. He was outof the range of seeing or being seen by Lady Cheynes.
"Who can she be?" he said to himself.
The old lady moved on calmly till she reached the doorway where MrsBelvoir was standing, and the greetings and introduction of Ella tookplace.
"We are later than I expected," said Lady Cheynes. "You see it was sucha sudden idea of mine."
"A delightful idea," Mrs Belvoir replied. "Where will you establishyourself, Lady Cheynes? There are a few seats in the ball-room--orwould you prefer staying here?"
"I will stay here, thank you," Ella's godmother replied, seating herselfbeside her hostess. "But this child here," she added in a lower voice,"I should like her to dance. Her sisters don't know she is coming. Itwill be quite a surprise to them to see her."
"They are both dancing," said Mrs Belvoir. "Of course she must dance.Ah! there is Louis,"--as she caught sight of one of her sons andbeckoned to him. "Louis," and a word or two of whispered explanationfollowed, before he was brought up and introduced, nothing loth, to thelovely stranger.
He did not catch the name clearly; Mrs Belvoir's special care tointroduce the young girl correctly, as "Miss _Ella_ St Quentin," had acurious result.
"Miss Ellison Winton," young Belvoir repeated to himself; "who in theworld can she be? I have never seen her before, that's certain."
But long ere his fragment of a dance with her came to an end, he foundhimself hoping that he should see her again!
"She is quite bewitching," he thought, "and she dances beautifully. Iwish I were not engaged so deep."
"May I introduce a partner or two to you, Miss--Miss Winton?" he said,and Ella did not notice the mistake, as she acquiesced, and two or threenew men were led up to her.
"Major Frost, Mr Littleton, Sir Philip Cheynes," followed each other inquick succession, and each in turn was informed privately by youngBelvoir that the young lady was "a Miss Ellison Winton, a perfectstranger," he added, "staying at some house in the neighbourhood;" andElla herself, a little bewildered still, heard the various names butindistinctly--the "Sir Philip," she caught but not the surname. And itnever occurred to her to associate the bearer of it with her godmother'sgrandson, whom she believed to be still in the north.
There was dancing in two rooms; during Ella's next dance, a waltz withMajor Frost, the elder Misses St Quentin were in the other room. Thenext, which she danced with Mr Littleton, was a square, and though sheonce caught sight of Madelene's head through a doorway, they did notcome more nearly together! which Ella, still more than half afraid ofbeing seen by her sisters, was not sorry for.
"It must come, sooner or later," she thought; "but I should like to bebeside my godmother when they first see me."
CHAPTER TEN.
AN OLD-WORLD SHOE.
"Our dance, I think, Miss St Quentin," said Major Frost, when, aftersearching some time for Madelene, he discovered her at last in thetea-room. "The second polka it is," and as Madelene acquiesced, "I havebeen dancing with such a wonderfully pretty little creature," he wenton, "a Miss Wyndham, or Winton, I am not quite sure of the name. Aperfect stranger, staying at some house in the neighbourhood they say.I must point her out to you."
"I wonder who she can be?" Miss St Quentin replied. "Mrs Belvoir didnot know of any particularly pretty girl coming--no stranger, I mean."
"But she is a _very_ particularly pretty girl; I know you will agreewith me. If you don't mind we'll go into the other room and I willpoint her out to you. She is dancing with Cheynes, I think."
Madelene felt but mildly interested in the object of her partner'senthusiasm, but she made no difficulty. The second room was verycrowded.
They danced for a few minutes and then stopped.
"It is too full, really," said Major Frost. Then suddenly he gave alittle exclamation.
"There she is," he said, and Madelene looked where he directed. It washer turn to start and exclaim.
"What is it?" asked her partner in surprise.
Madelene had recovered herself.
"Nothing," she said, "nothing except the most--the _most_ extraordinaryresemblance. It is not very pleasant here," she went on, "suppose we goback to the other room. I want to speak to my sister Ermine; she is inthere."
Major Frost was too polite to object, but he was rather disappointed.
"So you don't admire the stranger?" he said.
"On the contrary--I could only glance at her, but I could see that sheis very lovely, as you said. I wonder if my cousin, Sir Philip Cheynes,knows who she is?"
Just then she caught sight of Ermine. She was fortunately not dancing.Madelene made a sign to her.
"Ermine," she said in a low voice, "I am perfectly bewildered. Do youknow I do believe Ella is here?"
"_Ella_?" Ermine repeated.
"Yes--dancing in the other room with Philip. If it is not she, I neversaw such a likeness--_never_."
"But," said Ermine, looking dazed, "if she is dancing with Philip, hewould know, he would tell us."
"_He_ may not know who she is," said Madelene impatiently, for oncegrasping the situation more rapidly than her sister. "He has never seenher. And if it is she, she has not come in her own name. Major Frostsaid she was a Miss _Wyndham_."
Ermine looked relieved.
"Then it can't be she," she said. "She would never do such a thing.Knowing too that we were to be here--it would have been perfectlyabsurd."
But Miss St Quentin still looked dissatisfied.
"I don't know," she said. "I feel as if I were dreaming. She is notonly the very image of Ella, but her dress is uncommonly like the whitetulle frock that I had made for her in case papa had given in. Ermine,if she has done such a thing--such a scandalous thing as to come here byherself trusting to us not to tell--it would be--I don't know _what_ weshould do."
"Your imagination is running away with you, Maddie," said Ermine."Still all the same I shall go and have a look at this remarkable youngwoman--quietly, you know, without letting her see me. There's MajorFrost looking as if he couldn't think what's the matter, and he israther a gossip. I'll meet you again in the tea-room after I have mademy voyage of discovery."
So Madelene returned to her partner whose curiosity was not, at thattime at least, destined to be satisfied. As soon as the dance was over,she declared herself too tired and hot to attempt the next, and sendingMajor Frost off to explain matters to a brother-officer of his to whomshe happened to be engaged, she found a seat for herself in a corner ofthe conservatory where she hoped to be able to remain _perdue_ for a fewminutes.
Her head was full of Ella--for that Major Frost's "Miss Wyndham" was nother sister she could scarcely believe. And she felt both uneasy, andindignant. Suddenly a slight rustling close at hand warned her that herretreat was no longer hers alone--a small figu
re in white was making itsway in her direction, and as it seated itself she heard Ella's voice saylightly to some one unseen.
"Oh, yes, you will find me here. It is very good of you to fetch it forme."
Madelene rose to her feet. They were alone.
"_Ella_" she said.
The girl turned her head, then she too got up, and came forward, with asmile on her face, but a somewhat ill-assured and deprecating one.
"I was wondering when we should come across each other,"