CHAPTER XI
THE LADY FROM THE PRIORY
Bang! The noise of the explosion reverberated through the clear summer air,
and Ann, returning home from the village by way of a short cut through the
woods, smiled to herself as she heard it. She knew that sound--the staccato
percussion of a burst tyre--only too well.
The main road ran parallel with the woods, and, impelled by a friendly
curiosity to know if she could be of any help, she branched off at right
angles and turned her steps in its direction. As she approached she could
discern between the tree-trunks a car, slewed round half across the road,
and the figure of a woman standing beside it and bending over one of the
wheels. Her very attitude betokened a certain helplessness and
inexperience, and, seeing that she was alone, Ann quickened her pace.
"Can I help you at all?" she volunteered, as she reached the roadside.
The woman straightened herself.
"Oh, if you would!" she exclaimed, with obvious relief. "My tyre's burst,
and I'm ashamed to confess I haven't the faintest idea what to do."
Ann regarded her with interest. She was past her first girlhood, a woman of
about thirty, and unusually beautiful.
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