The Works of George W. M. Reynolds — page 156: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

THE COTTAGE AGAIN 139 in her looks to belie the assurances of safety she had ere now given him. She nevertheless gazed upon him with a singular earnestness, that had, however, nothing threatening in it, and yet her regards were of a nature which he could not comprehend. “You doubtless wish for explanations why you must depart so abruptly and in the middle of the night,” she said, at length breaking silence, and speaking in that curt, blunt, and imperious manner which seemed habituai to her, ‘‘ but you will receive none from my lips. It suits me to act in this way. But there is one point on which I may as well en- lighten you at once, which is, that all I told you about my having seen or spoken to the lady’s-maid at Evergreen Villa is pure invention on my part. 1 never took any trouble at all in the matter, and know nothing more of the young lady or her concerns than what I told you yesterday when you first came to the cottage. And now depart.’ “But this is most singular, most unaccountable exclaimed Saxondale, his courage reviving in proportion as he saw that there was actually no ground for alarm. “Depart, I say!”’ cried Madge Somers, stamping her foot impatiently. ‘“‘ Ii you stayed here for an hour, you would not drag from my lips a single word more than [ choose to tell you.” Lord Saxondale, perceiving that it was utterly useless to stand arguing the point with this singular woman, no longer hesitated to obey her command, and he accordingly followed her from the room. She descended the stairs with the candle in her hand, and held open the cottage door, her entire manner evincing an unaccountable impatience for him to begone. He accordingly went forth without another word, and speeding across the fields, entered the Seven Sisters Road. Meanwhile Madge Somers closed the front door and returned to her companion Chiffin, whom she found seated near the table and drinking large draughts of brandy and water, to which he had managed to help himself by aid of the glimmering light that peeped in through the window. 7? CONnNIECOOOKS (C(O)