As I rose to conduct him to my lady's room, he asked if Mr.
Franklin wished to be present.

Mr.Franklin answered, "Not unless Lady Verinder desires it." He added, in a whisper to me, as I was following the Sergeant out, "I know what that man is going to say about Rachel; and I am too fond of her to hear it, and keep my temper.

Leave me by myself." I left him, miserable enough, leaning on the sill of my window, with his face hidden in his hands and Penelope peeping through the door, longing to comfort him.

In Mr.Franklin's place, I should have called her in.
When you are ill-used by one woman, there is great comfort in telling it to another--because, nine times out of ten, the other always takes your side.

Perhaps, when my back was turned, he did call her in?
In that case it is only doing my daughter justice to declare that she would stick at nothing, in the way of comforting Mr.Franklin Blake.
In the meantime, Sergeant Cuff and I proceeded to my lady's room.
At the last conference we had held with her, we had found her not over willing to lift her eyes from the book which she had on the table.