— XVI —THE CUPBOARD WAS BARE
If Alan Thurston had only moved a very few steps the wish which he had uttered might have been gratified; he would have been able to see the look upon Philip Ford’s face as he received the intimation his whilom friend unconsciously conveyed.
When Miss Owen, on leaving him, had vanished into the house, he had inquired for the rector. On being informed that Mr. Campion had had a pressing call to a parishioner, but was expected very shortly to return, Ford decided to wait till he came back. There were matters on which he wished to speak to him; a more propitious moment would hardly be likely to occur; he was in a mood to make a confidant of his friend. He declined an invitation to enter the house, on the ground that he preferred to await the rector in the garden
