Heyton slept badly that night and came down to breakfast after Lord Sutcombe and Miriam had finished theirs and gone out.

He was in a bad temper, cursed the footman who waited on him, and when he had drunk a cup of coffee and made pretence of eating a piece of toast, mixed himself a glass of soda and whisky and went out.
He wandered about the park, and did not come in to lunch, but when he appeared at dinner, he was more than usually cheerful and talked to Miriam and his father in the aimless and futile way with which a man talks when he is engaged in the unaccustomed task of making himself agreeable.

Both Miriam and his father noticed that he was more sparing of the wine than usual, and Lord Sutcombe, who thought that Miriam had given Percy a hint, glanced at her gratefully.
"Where have you been all day, Percy ?" asked Miriam, masking her indifference with a show of curiosity.
"Oh, I've been mouching about," he said.

"Looking round the estate generally." He fingered his glass and glanced across at the Marquess.
"They seem to look after the preserves pretty well," he said; "but I noticed that there was a gipsy encampment down by the pool.

Unpleasant sort of characters to have about you.