Armitage was aware that a jeweler's shop was hardly the place for
extended conversation with a young woman whom he scarcely knew, but he
lingered in the joy of hearing this American girl's voice, and what she
said interested him immensely. He had seen her first in Paris a few
months before at an exhibition of battle paintings. He had come upon her
standing quite alone before _High Tide at Gettysburg_, the picture of the
year; and he had noted the quick mounting of color to her cheeks as the
splendid movement of the painting--its ardor and fire--took hold of her.
He saw her again in Florence; and it was from there that he had
deliberately followed the Claibornes.
His own plans were now quite unsettled by his interview with Von
Stroebel. He fully expected Chauvenet in Geneva; the man had apparently
been on cordial terms with the Claibornes; and as he had seemed to be
master of his own time, it was wholly possible that he would appear
before the Claibornes left Geneva. It was now the second day after Von
Stroebel's departure, and Armitage began to feel uneasy.
He stood with Shirley quite near the shop door, watching for Captain
Claiborne to come back with the carriage.
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