"Mistress Ratcliffe, thou mean'st?" said Wayne, after a silence. "What ails thee, bairn, to be so hot for this unlikely wedding?"
"Because she is straight and strong, and full of care for thee; because, when an ill chance led me once to Wildwater, it was she who took pity on me and showed me a safe road to Marsh. Ned, she is the one wife in the world for thee; why wilt thou cling to the old troubles?"
He shook his head. "The troubles are new that stand 'twixt Janet and myself--and any day may bring forth more of them."
"Thy folk will be her folk, if thou'lt take her," she broke in eagerly. "She lives among rough men--there's danger every hour for her."
Mistress Wayne had struck the right note at last. Half willing as he was to be convinced, and imbued with the sense that the fairy-kist could give no wrong advice, he would yet have held obstinately to his old path. But he took fire at the suggestion that there was danger to the girl at Wildwater. Now and then a passing fear of it had crossed his own self-poised outlook on the situation; but a hint of it from another roused all his smouldering jealousy and passion.
But Mistress Wayne had no time to answer; for the door opened on the sudden and the four lads came tumbling into hall, piling the fruits of their long day's sport in a heap against the wall.
"A rare day we've had, Ned!" cried Griff. "Ay, we're late for supper, but thou'lt not grudge it when thou see'st how many other suppers we've brought home to larder."
Wayne looked at the heap of grouse and snipe, conies and hares and moor-cock. "Well, fall to, lads," he laughed, "and I'll save my scolding till ye're primed against it.--Are ye still bent on hawking to-morrow, after this full day's sport?"
"Ay, are we!" cried Griff. "We're but the keener set to have another day of it."
"Then go; but mind ye come straight up to the washing-pool after dinner. 'Tis time ye learned the ways of farming."
The youngsters made wry faces at this as they settled themselves to the mutton-pasty.
"We met the Lean Man again to-day," said one presently, in between two goodly mouthfuls.
"Naught. He wore as broken a look as ever I saw, and when we rode at him with a shout----"
"Lads, lads, fight men less skilled at sword-play than the Lean Man," put in Shameless Wayne, smiling the while at their spirit.