FREE BOOKS

Author's List




PREV.   NEXT  
|<   116   117   118   119   120   121   122   123   124   125   126   127   128   129   130   131   132   133   134   135   136   137   138   139   140  
141   142   143   144   145   146   147   148   149   >>  
iron purpose. And Althea! Oh! is it thus that the child of Ellice doth come to Della's daughter? And what hath this daughter as a shield from the tempter? Came he not unto sinless Eve in Paradise; unto her even who had seen the Eternal Majesty, and listened to His voice? And Althea had not laid up her treasure in Heaven. She had not given her wounded heart to Him who was wounded for our transgressions. She had not poured her sorrows into the ear of the Infinite, nor laid her bleeding hands upon the cross of Christ. So turned Althea from a now unloved, ungracious husband; from a bitter sorrow for her lost child, to human love and human consolation. But Althea was not won so easily from her stronghold of duty. Nor would she, on recovering from the shock of Hubert's first proposal, consent to flee at once, putting the sea between them and Thornton Rush. Hubert pleaded strongly and well, but could gain only this point. He would return to Kennons, and dispose of his property and hers. She would remain with her husband for the present. The first time he should raise his hand against her, as he had already done, she would leave his house and procure a divorce. With this was Hubert fain to be content; and the day before the anticipated return of Thornton Rush, after his absence of three weeks, he left Vine Cottage and the sad-faced lady who dwelt therein, confident that ere many months he would have Althea as his wife, and sweet revenge upon his old-time enemy. CHAPTER XXIV. JEALOUSY. Naturally, Althea was a changed person in the eyes of her husband. A man less jealously disposed might have attributed this to the sudden death of an only beloved child. But to Thornton, the knowledge that Hubert Lisle, a man his superior in mental, moral and personal accomplishments, had associated with Althea during almost the whole period of his absence, this knowledge, we say, was to Thornton as gall and wormwood. "And how did you like your cousin?" he questioned with assumed carelessness. Had Althea answered equally carelessly, "Oh! very well," she would have aroused suspicion, for she well understood her husband. So she said with enthusiasm: "I liked him very much indeed. I wish you could have met him. He is very agreeable and most intelligent." "You speak as if you thought I was a stranger to him. I have seen Hubert Lisle before to-day!" "But you have not seen him of late. A six years residence abroad mus
PREV.   NEXT  
|<   116   117   118   119   120   121   122   123   124   125   126   127   128   129   130   131   132   133   134   135   136   137   138   139   140  
141   142   143   144   145   146   147   148   149   >>  



Top keywords:
Althea
 

Hubert

 

husband

 

Thornton

 

absence

 
return
 
knowledge
 

wounded

 
daughter
 

JEALOUSY


stranger

 

CHAPTER

 
changed
 

jealously

 
thought
 

person

 
Naturally
 
residence
 

Cottage

 

abroad


disposed

 

revenge

 

months

 

confident

 

attributed

 

enthusiasm

 

wormwood

 

cousin

 

equally

 

understood


suspicion

 
carelessly
 

answered

 

questioned

 

assumed

 
carelessness
 

period

 
beloved
 

agreeable

 
intelligent

aroused
 

sudden

 
superior
 
accomplishments
 

mental

 

personal

 
dispose
 

poured

 
sorrows
 

transgressions