CHAPTERXX。
IHAVEHEARDTHEPASSIONATEGALLOPOFTHOSEFIERY-FOOTEDSTEEDS。
Ellawasstandingwaitingforheroutsidetheopendoorofadrawingroom。Shewaswearingalovelyeveningdresswithacorsageofwhitelacecoveredwithdiamondsandsapphires。Herhair——itwasofthedarkestbrownandwasveryplentiful——wasalsoglitteringwithgemsunderthelightthatflowedthroughtheopendoor。ThesamelightshowedPhyllishowdeathlywhiteElla\'sfaceandneckwere——howtumultuouslyherbosomwasheaving。Shehadonehandpressedtoherside，andtheotheronthehandleofthedoorwhenPhyllismether；
andinthatattitude，eventhoughtheexpanseofwhiteflesh，withitsgraciouscurvesthatforcedoutherbodice，hadnoroseatetintuponit，shelookedlovely——intoxicatingtotheeyesofmen。
Phylliswascertainlysurprised。Thehourwasscarcelyeleven，butEllahadgivennonoticeofherintentiontopayavisittoherfriendthatnight。Whenthegirlraisedherhandswithalaughofadmiration，ofpleasure，Ellagraspedherhandswithbothofherownanddrewherintothedrawingroomwithoutaword。Thenwithacry，——alaughandacrymingled，——sheliterallyflungherselfintothegirl\'sarmsandkissedherconvulsivelyadozentimes，onthethroat，ontheneck，ontheshoulderwhereonherheadlay。