Agnes gladly accepted the suggestion. They directed their steps

towards the square of St. Mark, so as to enjoy the breeze blowing
over the lagoon. It was the first visit of Agnes to Venice.

The fascination of the wonderful city of the waters exerted its
full influence over her sensitive nature. The proposed half-hour

of the walk had passed away, and was fast expanding to half
an hour more, before Lord Montbarry could persuade his companion

to remember that dinner was waiting for them. As they returned,
passing under the colonnade, neither of them noticed a lady

in deep mourning, loitering in the open space of the square.
She started as she recognised Agnes walking with the new Lord Montbarry--

hesitated for a moment--and then followed them, at a discreet distance,
back to the hotel.

Lady Montbarry received Agnes in high spirits--with news of an event
which had happened in her absence.

She had not left the hotel more than ten minutes, before a little
note in pencil was brought to Lady Montbarry by the housekeeper.

The writer proved to be no less a person than the widow lady
who occupied the room on the other side of the drawing-room,

which her ladyship had vainly hoped to secure for Agnes.
Writing under the name of Mrs. James, the polite widow explained

that she had heard from the housekeeper of the disappointment
experienced by Lady Montbarry in the matter of the rooms.

Mrs. James was quite alone; and as long as her bed-chamber was airy
and comfortable, it mattered nothing to her whether she slept on

the first or the second floor of the house. She had accordingly
much pleasure in proposing to change rooms with Miss Lockwood.

Her luggage had already been removed, and Miss Lockwood had only to
take possession of the room (Number 13 A), which was now entirely at

her disposal.
'I immediately proposed to see Mrs. James,' Lady Montbarry continued,

'and to thank her personally for her extreme kindness.
But I was informed that she had gone out, without leaving word

at what hour she might be expected to return. I have written
a little note of thanks, saying that we hope to have the pleasure

of personally expressing our sense of Mrs. James's courtesy
to-morrow. In the mean time, Agnes, I have ordered your boxes

to be removed downstairs. Go!--and judge for yourself, my dear,
if that good lady has not given up to you the prettiest room

in the house!'
With those words, Lady Montbarry left Miss Lockwood to make a hasty

toilet for dinner.
The new room at once produced a favourable impression on Agnes.

The large window, opening into a balcony, commanded an admirable
view of the canal. The decorations on the walls and ceiling were

skilfully copied from the exquisitelygraceful designs of Raphael
in the Vatican. The massivewardrobe possessed compartments

of unusual size, in which double the number of dresses that Agnes
possessed might have been conveniently hung at full length.

In the inner corner of the room, near the head of the bedstead,
there was a recess which had been turned into a little dressing-room,

and which opened by a second door on the inferiorstaircase of
the hotel, commonly used by the servants. Noticing these aspects

of the room at a glance, Agnes made the necessary change in her dress,
as quickly as possible. On her way back to the drawing-room she was

addressed by a chambermaid in the corridor who asked for her key.
'I will put your room tidy for the night, Miss,' the woman said,

'and I will then bring the key back to you in the drawing-room.'
While the chambermaid was at her work, a solitary lady, loitering about

the corridor of the second storey, was watching her over the bannisters.
After a while, the maid appeared, with her pail in her hand,

leaving the room by way of the dressing-room and the back stairs.
As she passed out of sight, the lady on the second floor (no other,

it is needless to add, than the Countess herself) ran swiftly
down the stairs, entered the bed-chamber by the principal door,

and hid herself in the empty side compartment of the wardrobe.
The chambermaid returned, completed her work, locked the door

of the dressing-room on the inner side, locked the principal
entrance-door on leaving the room, and returned the key to Agnes in the

drawing-room.
The travellers were just sitting down to their late dinner,

when one of the children noticed that Agnes was not wearing her watch.
Had she left it in her bed-chamber in the hurry of changing her dress?

She rose from the table at once in search of her watch; Lady Montbarry
advising her, as she went out, to see to the security of her bed-chamber,

in the event of there being thieves in the house. Agnes found
her watch, forgotten on the toilet table, as she had anticipated.

Before leaving the room again she acted on Lady Montbarry's advice,
and tried the key in the lock of the dressing-room door. It was

properly secured. She left the bed-chamber, locking the main door
behind her.

Immediately on her departure, the Countess, oppressed by the confined
air in the wardrobe, ventured on stepping out of her hiding place

into the empty room.
Entering the dressing-room, she listened at the door, until the silence

outside informed her that the corridor was empty. Upon this,
she unlocked the door, and, passing out, closed it again softly;

leaving it to all appearance (when viewed on the inner side)
as carefully secured as Agnes had seen it when she tried the key in

the lock with her own hand.
While the Montbarrys were still at dinner, Henry Westwick joined them,

arriving from Milan.
When he entered the room, and again when he advanced to shake hands

with her, Agnes was conscious of a latent feeling which secretly
reciprocated Henry's unconcealed pleasure on meeting her again.

For a moment only, she returned his look; and in that moment her own
observation told her that she had silently encouraged him to hope.

She saw it in the sudden glow of happiness which overspread his face;
and she confusedly took refuge in the usual conventional inquiries relating

to the relatives whom he had left at Milan.
Taking his place at the table, Henry gave a most amusing account

of the position of his brother Francis between the mercenary
opera-dancer on one side, and the unscrupulous manager of the French

theatre on the other. Matters had proceeded to such extremities,
that the law had been called on to interfere, and had decided the dispute

in favour of Francis. On winning the victory the English manager had
at once left Milan, recalled to London by the affairs of his theatre.

He was accompanied on the journey back, as he had been accompanied
on the journey out, by his sister. Resolved, after passing two

nights of terror in the Venetian hotel, never to enter it again,
Mrs. Norbury asked to be excused from appearing at the family festival,

on the ground of ill-health. At her age, travelling fatigued her,
and she was glad to take advantage of her brother's escort to return

to England.
While the talk at the dinner-table flowed easily onward,

the evening-time advanced to night--and it became necessary
to think of sending the children to bed.

As Agnes rose to leave the room, accompanied by the eldest girl,
she observed with surprise that Henry's manner suddenly changed.

He looked serious and pre-occupied; and when his niece wished him
good night, he abruptly said to her, 'Marian, I want to know what

part of the hotel you sleep in?' Marian, puzzled by the question,
answered that she was going to sleep, as usual, with 'Aunt Agnes.'

Not satisfied with that reply, Henry next inquired whether the bedroom
was near the rooms occupied by the other members of the travelling party.

Answering for the child, and wondering what Henry's object could
possibly be, Agnes mentioned the polite sacrifice made to her

convenience by Mrs. James. 'Thanks to that lady's kindness,'
she said, 'Marian and I are only on the other side of the drawing-room.'

Henry made no remark; he looked incomprehensibly discontented
as he opened the door for Agnes and her companion to pass out.

After wishing them good night, he waited in the corridor
until he saw them enter the fatal corner-room--and then