then
turned her gaze, full and bold, upon him.

"I do not complain," she said.

He bowed gravely. "We will do our best for you, and if you will take
patience, the time will pass at last, as all time passes. I have a few
books, they shall be brought into your cabin. In three days we shall
be in St. Malo--There, if you like----" he hesitated, embarrassed.

"There!" echoed Lady Landale with her eyes still fixed upon his
downcast face--"If I like--what?"

"We could leave you----"

Her bosom rose and fell quickly with stormy breaths. "Alone,
moneyless, in a strange town--that is well and kindly thought!" she
said.

Whence had come to her this strange power of feeling pain? She had not
known that one could suffer in one's heart like this; she, whose
quarrel with life hitherto had been for its too great comfort,
security and peace. She felt a lump rise to her throat, and tears well
into her eyes, blurring all the sunlit vision and she turned her head
away and beat her sound left hand clenched upon the ledge.

"Before heaven," cried Jack, distressed out of his unnatural
stiffness, "you mistake me, Lady Landale! I am only anxious to do what
is best for you, what Adrian would wish. To leave you alone, deserted,
helpless at St. Malo, you could not have thought I should mean that?
No, indeed, I would have seen you into safe hands, in some comfortable
hotel, with a maid to wait upon you--I know of such a place--Adrian
could not have been long in coming to fetch you. I should have had a
letter ready to post to him the instant we landed. As to money,"
flushing boyishly, "that is the least consideration--there is no
dearth of that to fear. If you prefer it I can, however, convey you
somewhere upon the English coast after we quit St. Malo; but that will
entail a longer residence for you here on board ship; and it is no fit
place for you."

Still looking out across the sea, Molly replied, in a deep shaken
voice, unlike her own, "You did not think it unfit for my sister."

"Your sister? But your sister was to have been my wife!"

Burning through the mists of her unshed tears once more her glance
returned to his: "And I--" she cried and here was suddenly silent
again, gazing at the thin circlet of gold upon her left hand, beneath
the flashing diamonds. After a moment then, she broke out
fiercely--"Oh do with me what you will, but for God's sake leave me in
peace!" And stamping, turned her shoulder on him to stare straight
out