ithout falling in love with them, and whom it
was no use to fall in love with unless one was ready to marry them. The
light of the summer afternoon, and of Miss Mildred's pure spirit, seemed
suddenly to flood the whole subject. He saw that he was in danger, and
he had long since made up his mind that from this particular peril
it was not only necessary but honorable to flee. He took leave of his
hostess before her sister reappeared, and had the courage even to say to
her that he would not come back often after that; they would be so much
occupied by their brother and his wife! As he moved across the glassy
bay, to the rhythm of the oars, he wished either that the sisters would
leave Naples or that his confounded commodore would send for him.

When Kate returned from her errand, ten minutes later, Milly told her
of the captain's visit, and added that she had never seen anything so
sudden as the way he left her. "He would n't wait for you, my dear,
and he said he thought it more than likely that he should never see us
again. It is as if he thought you were going to die too!"

"Is his ship called away?" Kate Theory asked.

"He did n't tell me so; he said we should be so busy with Percival and
Agnes."

"He has got tired of us,--that's all. There's nothing wonderful in that;
I knew he would."

Mildred said nothing for a moment; she was watching her sister, who was
very attentively arranging some flowers. "Yes, of course, we are very
dull, and he is like everybody else."

"I thought you thought he was so wonderful," said Kate, "and so fond of
us."

"So he is; I am surer of that than ever. That's why he went away so
abruptly."

Kate looked at her sister now. "I don't understand."

"Neither do I, darling. But you will, one of these days."

"How if he never comes back?"

"Oh, he will--after a while--when I am gone. Then he will explain; that,
at least, is clear to me."

"My poor precious, as if I cared!" Kate Theory exclaimed, smiling as she
distributed her flowers. She carried them to the window, to place them
near her sister, and here she paused a moment, her eye caught by an
object, far out in the bay, with which she was not unfamiliar. Mildred
noticed its momentary look, and followed its direction.

"It's the captain's gig going back to the ship," Milly said. "It's so
still one can almost hear the oars."

Kate Theory turned away, with a sudden, strange violence, a movement and
exclamation which, the very ne