For many minutes Philip sat motionless where Pierre had left him. The
earth seemed suddenly to have dropped from under his feet, leaving him
in an illimitable chaos of mind. Gregson had deserted him, with almost
no word of explanation, and he would have staked his life upon
Gregson's loyalty. Under other circumstances his unaccountable action
would have been a serious blow. But now it was overshadowed by the
mysterious change that had come over Jeanne. A few hours before she had
been happy, laughing and singing as they drew nearer to Fort o' God;
each hour had added to the brightness of her eyes, the gladness in her
voice. The change had come with Pierre, and at the bottom of it all was
Lord Fitzhugh Lee. Pierre had warned him not to mention Lord Fitzhugh's
name to Jeanne, and yet only a short time before he had spoken the name
boldly before Jeanne, and she had betrayed no sign of recognition or of
fear. More than that, she had assured him that she had never heard the
name before, that it was not known at Fort o' God.

Philip bowed his head in his hands, and his fingers clutched in his
hair. What did it all mean? He went back to the scene on the cliff,
when Pierre had roused himself at the sound of the name; he thought of
all that had happened since Gregson had come to Churchill, and the
result was a delirium of thought that made his temples throb. He was
sure--now--of but few things. He loved Jeanne--loved her more than he
had ever dreamed that he could love a woman, and he believed that it
would be impossible for her to tell him a falsehood. He was confident
that she had never heard of Lord Fitzhugh until Pierre overtook them in
their flight from Churchill. He could see but one thing to do, and that
was to follow Pierre's advice, accepting his promise that in the end
everything would come out right. He had faith in Pierre.

He rose to his feet and went to the tent-flap. An embarrassing thought
came to him, and he stopped, a flush of feverish color suddenly
mounting into his pale cheeks. He had kissed Jeanne in the chasm, when
death thundered in their faces. He had kissed her again and again, and
in those kisses he had declared his love. He was glad, and yet sorry;
the knowledge that she must know of his love filled him with happiness,
and yet with it there was the feeling that it would place a distance
between him and Jeanne.

Jeanne was the first to see him when he came out of the tent. She was
sitting beside a s