CHAPTERXXIII
PhilippaandHelenmetinthedrawing-room，afewminutesbeforeeightthatevening。Philippawaswearinganewblackdress，amodelofsimplicitytotheuntutoredeye，butfullofthatundefinableappealtothemysteriouswhicheventhegreatestartistfrequentlyfailstocreateoutofanyformofcolour。Somefancyhadinducedhertostripoffherjewelsatthelastmoment，andsheworenoornamentssaveabandofblackvelvetaroundherneck。Helenlookedathercuriously。
\"Isthisafreshschemeforconquest，Philippa？\"sheasked，astheystoodtogetherbythelogfire。
Philippaunexpectedlyflushed。
\"Idon’tknowwhatIwasthinkingabout，really，\"sheconfessed。