Janet had then smiled triumphantly, and said she would make
her change her mind yet; had looked, in fact, very much as Bobus did
when he put aside her remonstrances. It was not the air of a person
who had lost the records of the secret and was afraid to confess,
though it was possible she might have them in her own keeping.
Caroline longed to search the bureau, but however dishonourably Janet
might have acted towards herself, she could not break into her
private receptacles without warning. So after some consideration,
she made Barbara drive her to the station, and send the following
telegraphic message to Janet's address at Edinburgh:—-
"Come home at once. Father's memorandum book missing. Must be
searched for."
All that day and the next the sons wondered what was amiss with their
mother, she was so pensive, with starts of flightiness. Allen
thought she was going to have an illness, and Bobus that it was a
very strange and foolish way of taking his resistance, but all the
time Armine was going about quite unperceiving, in a blissful state.
The vicar's sister, a spirited, active, and very winning woman of
thirty-five, had captivated him, as she did all the lads of the
parish. He had been walking about with her, being introduced to all
the needs of the parish, and his enthusiastic nature throwing itself
into the cause of religion and beneficence, which was in truth his
congenial element; he was ready to undertake for himself and his
mother whatever was wanted, without a word of solicitation, nay
rather, the vicar, who thought it all far too good to be true, held
him back.
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