She lifted her skirts a little, and laughed at the inappropriateness
of her thin shoes and open-work stockings. Andrew de la Borne held
out his strong hand, and she sprang lightly on to the broad seat.

"It is very nice of you," she said, with her slight foreign accent,
"to come and fetch me. Should I have been drowned?"

"No!" he answered. "As a matter of fact, the spot where you were
standing is not often altogether submerged. You might have been a
prisoner for a few hours. Perhaps as the tide is going to be high,
your feet would have been wet. But there was no danger."

She settled down as comfortably as possible in the awkward seat.

"After all, then," she said, "this is not a real adventure. Where
are you going to take me to?"

"I can only take you," he answered, "to the village. I suppose you
came from the Hall?"

"Yes!" she answered. "I walked straight across from the gate. I
never thought about the tide coming up here."

"You will have to walk back by the road," he answered. "It is a good
deal further round, but there is no other way."

She hung her hand over the side, rejoicing in the touch of the cool
soft water.

"That," she answered, "does not matter at all. It is very early