His alarm was lessened, though his perplexity was increased, when he received a brief reply that such a lady was in the house.
"Do you know if it is my daughter ?" asked Melbury.
The waiter did not.
"Do you know the lady's name ?" Of this, too, the household was ignorant, the hotel having been taken by brand-new people from a distance.

They knew the gentleman very well by sight, and had not thought it necessary to ask him to enter his name.
"Oh, the gentleman appears again now," said Melbury to himself.

"Well, I want to see the lady," he declared.
A message was taken up, and after some delay the shape of Grace appeared descending round the bend of the stair-case, looking as if she lived there, but in other respects rather guilty and frightened.
"Why--what the name--" began her father.

"I thought you went out to get parsley!" "Oh, yes--I did--but it is all right," said Grace, in a flurried whisper.

"I am not alone here.