"Very good," said Mr. Dacres, slowly.
"That will all do very well for her, you know,
and all that; but you and I must take a
business view of it. Since you don't fix the day,
Colonel Vivian, I do. Let me see now. Your
Duchess of Kent sails on the twenty-third. You
will have to leave here on the night of the
twentieth, to give yourself a margin for accidents,
so on the morning of the twentieth we'll have
our little ceremony, and go away snug by the
evening boat. Do you see?"

The other remained silent and stupified.

"That's all arranged. Or, if you do
require time, you don't leave this place, and the
Duchess must go without you. You must
see, yourself, there can be no trifling in this
matter. It has gone too far. You wouldn't
like, I know, to be sailing away in your
comfortable ship, drinking your duty-free claret
below, while my poor little thing is fretting
herself out here, with the foul fingers of these
scandal-mongers pointed after her. No, no."

Vivian felt that it was not only Dacres who
was putting this state of things before him, but
his own heart.

"Now see. I don't ask you to say
anything," went on Mr. Dacres, " for I know you
are a man of the world, and have plenty of sense.
Ah! there is Lulu herself, bright as the very
morning dew. Ah, my pet, all the world over
is busy with your little name."

Lucy, with a little trouble in her face, looked
from one to the other. Trials of late seemed
to be visiting her life.

"Your amiable friend West," he said, " has
been showing his hoof again. But I have
news for you, my pet. Papa and Vivian have
been talking over something definite, and have
fixed on the day when he's to carry off his
little treasure, and poor old Harco is to be left
sitting over his empty grate. Yes: the twentieth
is the joyful day;" and in a low, half-plaintive
tone, he began the ecclesiastical refrain:

               " Sing ye the joyful day,
                   All join in praise!''

Lucy looked at Vivian wistfully, but with
the light of a secret joy spreading over her
face. She saw his face downcast; his eyes
on the ground. She said, hesitatingly, to her
father:

"We must not hurry, Harco dear—we have so
many things to think of."

"And what do you know, pray?" said he,
turning on her sharply; " or have you been
settling this between you? See here, now. I
had to speak plainly to our dear colonel  a few
moments ago, and I must speak plainer still. I
don't want to know your secrets or your family
affairs; and what, colonel, you call the
difficulty in this matter. That's your own concern.
Get rid of it, or keep it, as you like. God
grant you may! But I can't recognise it.
Things have gone too far for that; and if we
hear more of it, I can only say it will take a
very ugly look, and give rise to ugly suspicions.
So now I ask you again, before her, for a plain
answer. Will that day which I have fixed as
the very latest suit you? Or is it your intention
to try and leave this place without
fulfilling what you have engaged to do? I say,
to try."

Vivian's face worked in emotion. Then he
looked over at Lucy's wistful face, in which
could be seen plainly interest for him and ready
sacrifice of herself. She seemed the Dear Girl
indeed at that moment.

Dacres went on as though he had a witness
in the box: "There is no compulsion, understand
—only it must be decided on the spot, sir.
I am constrained to give you the alternative.
Accept the day, or sail away! Say yes, and
you are a true man; say no, or hesitate or
shilly-shally, and from this minute you never
see or speak to my Lulu again."

Distractedly Vivian turned to Lucy, so gentle,
loving, sweet, and beautiful, with an air of
sorrow which is at the bottom of all interest.
That look decided him, and he answered
desperately:

"I agree. Yes, on that day be it!"

"There," said Mr. Dacres, seizing his hand.
"You are a true man and a noble man, and a
fine fellow, and have taken a load from our
hearts. Now see how these mists are all
dispelled as a vapour. I merely go out, see all
the old women of both sexes, and tell them
the glad day is fixed. Where be their stories
then? where their gibes? They may paint an
inch thick, and welcome. I'll be off at once.
As for that viper West, shall I take him in hand,
or you?"

"Leave him to me," said Vivian, excitedly.
"Don't be alarmed, Lucy dearest, there shall
be no quarrelling nor confusion; but he must
be warned."

Mr. Dacres then went out, leaving the
young ones together. Vivian, for the first
time, took that slight figure in his arms, and
said, " Heaven send that no ill may come of
this!"

                   Now ready, price Fourpence,
                                  THE
EXTRA  DOUBLE NUMBER FOR  CHRISTMAS,
                   ENTITLED
           NO THOROUGHFARE.
          BY CHARLES DICKENS
           AND WILKIE COLLINS.

             Bound in cloth, price 5s. 6d.,
THE EIGHTEENTH VOLUME.