Lord Tony's Wife: An Adventure of the Scarlet Pimpernel. Emma Orczy

she replied with gentle earnestness, "so perfect, in fact, that I am almost afraid something must happen presently to upset it all."

      "Nothing can happen," he assured her. "M. Martin-Roget is not here, and His Royal Highness is even now monopolising M. le duc de Kernogan so that he cannot get away."

      "Your friend must be very clever to manipulate so many strings on our behalf!"

      "It is long past midnight now, sweetheart," he said with sudden irrelevance.

      "Yes, I know. I have been watching the time: and I have already thought everything out for the best. I very often go home from balls and routs in the company of Lady Ffoulkes and sleep in her house those nights. Father is always quite satisfied, when I do that, and to-night he will be doubly satisfied feeling that I shall be taken away from your society. Lady Ffoulkes is in the secret, of course, so Lady Blakeney told me, and she will be ready for me in a few minutes now: she'll take me home with her and there I will change my dress and rest for awhile, waiting for the happy hour. She will come to the church with me and then … oh then! Oh! my dear milor!" she added suddenly with a deep sigh whilst her whole face became irradiated with a light of intense happiness, "as you say it is the most wonderful thing in all the world – this – our beautiful adventure together."