Mr. MacAllister, who usually with ready tact softened such acerbities, maintained a grim silence. De Vaux threw himself into the breach and made an excited, stuttering attempt at mediation, compelling Miss MacAllister to laugh against her will.
In spite of this, and in spite of Carteret's abject apology and retraction, a tense feeling pervaded the atmosphere throughout the remainder of the luncheon, and all were glad when it was over.
To Miss MacAllister the remainder of the day was no less trying. She realized that her sudden flame of indignation had surprised her into betraying to prying and unfriendly eyes feelings toward Dr. Sinclair which she had not before dared to confess to herself. She knew that her mother had been bitterly chagrined by her open espousal of the big Canadian's cause and by the merciless snub she had given that ambitious woman's pet aristocrat. But she knew her mother too well to imagine for one instant that this scene, painful though it was, would make her desist from the purpose to which she had set her mind. She had not long to wait for the proof of the truth of her conclusions.
That afternoon the ladies were left pretty much to their own devices. Some of the men were busy preparing for the morrow. Others who had little to do were on the old fort or other vantage points, watching the warships which lay just outside the harbour, and were speculating in an inexpert fashion on the probabilities and prospects of the following day. All of which speculations and prophecies the following day proved to be false. But in the meantime the idle ones grew eloquent over their own imaginings, and, like most armchair experts, persuaded themselves that they did know something about war and the respective fighting qualities of French marines and Chinese soldiers.
Taking advantage of her husband's absence, Mrs. MacAllister called her daughter into her room. After some preliminary fencing, she plunged into the subject she had in mind:
"There is no need of my concealing from you, Jessie, how deeply I was grieved and disappointed by your conduct towards Mr. Carteret to-day."
"I am very sorry to have hurt your feelings, mother. But I am not sorry for telling Mr. Carteret the truth and giving him what he deserved."