," the man returned. "Miss Lucy's there. She said she expected
you'd come there before you went home."

"She did?"

"Yes, sir."

Eugene stared. "I suppose Mr. Minafer must be pretty bad," he said.

"Yes, sir. I understand he's liable to get well, though, sir." He moved
his lever into high speed, and the car went through the heavy traffic
like some fast, faithful beast that knew its way about, and knew its
master's need of haste. Eugene did not speak again until they reached
the hospital.

Fanny met him in the upper corridor, and took him to an open door.

He stopped on the threshold, startled; for, from the waxen face on the
pillow, almost it seemed the eyes of Isabel herself were looking at
him: never before had the resemblance between mother and son been so
strong--and Eugene knew that now he had once seen it thus startlingly,
he need divest himself of no bitterness "to be kind" to Georgie.

George was startled, too. He lifted a white hand in a queer gesture,
half forbidding, half imploring, and then let his arm fall back upon the
coverlet. "You must have thought my mother wanted you to come," he said,
"so that I could ask you to--to forgive me."

But Lucy, who sat beside him, lifted ineffable eyes from him to her
father, and shook her head. "No, just to take his hand--gently!"

She was radiant.

But for Eugene another radiance filled the room. He knew that he had
been true at last to his true love, and that through him she had brought
her boy under shelter again. Her eyes would look wistful no more.

The End

End of Project Gutenberg's The Magnificent Ambersons, by Booth Tarkington

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