What would keep me here ?" Sir Hugh then opened the door, and Harry passed through it, not without a cautious look over his shoulder, so that he might be on his guard if any violence were contemplated.

But Hugh knew better than that, and allowed his cousin to walk out of the room, and out of the house, unmolested.
And this had happened on the day of the funeral! Harry Clavering had quarrelled thus with the father within a few hours of the moment in which they two had stood together over the grave of that father's only child! As he thought of this while he walked across the park, he became sick at heart.

How vile, wretched and miserable was the world around him! How terribly vicious were the people with whom he was dealing! And what could he think of himself--of himself, who was engaged to Florence Burton, and engaged also, as he certainly was, to Lady Ongar?
Even his cousin had rebuked him for his treachery to Florence; but what would his cousin have said had he known all?
And then what good had he done; or, rather, what evil had he not done?
In his attempt on behalf of Lady Clavering, had he not, in truth, interfered without proper excuse, and fairly laid himself open to anger from his cousin?
And he felt that he had been an ass, a fool, a conceited ass, thinking that he could produce good, when his interference could be efficacious only for evil.

Why could he not have held his tongue when Sir Hugh came in, instead of making that vain suggestion as to Lady Clavering?
But even this trouble was but an addition to the great trouble that overwhelmed him.

How was he to escape the position which he had made for himself in reference to Lady Ongar?
As he had left London he had promised to himself that he would write to her that same night and tell her everything as to Florence; but the night had passed, and the next day was nearly gone, and no such letter had been written..