CHAPTER FOURThe Duke left his phaeton with the groom and walked across the grass towards the Achilles statue.
At six o’clock in the morning the mists in Hyde Park were still substantial round the trunks of the trees and the grass was wet with dew.
There was a puzzled expression on the Duke’s face as, moving behind the statue, he saw a veiled figure rise from a seat and utter a little cry.
“What in the name of God is all this about, Delphine?” he enquired as the Countess threw back her veil and raised an anguished face to his.
“I had to see you,” she replied, “and it was the only way I could do so without Edward being aware of it.”
“I thought I must be dreaming when I received your note an hour ago,” the Duke said.
“Edward returned last night,” the Countess stated with a little quiver
