There was the usual long passage with larders on either side just as there were at her own home.
She passed the kitchen, which seemed very quiet. There was no one there and she saw on the far side of it the servants’ hall.
It was a large room and appeared comfortably furnished but it too was empty.
She began to think that the Marquis had deserted his home and there was no one left in it.
Then, as she came to the pantry, she heard voices.
As she neared it, a man came out.
He was an elderly man with a certain look of authority and she was sure that he must be the butler.
He looked at her in surprise, and she began,
“Good afternoon. I have come with a message from the Marquis of Melverley for a Mr. Richardson but I understand that he is ill.”
“A message from his Lordship?” the man fa
