thers rather than herself, and she
was now almost startled to see how she had allowed selfishness to get the
better of her. While the Misses Bruce were speaking, old longings, which
had slept since her mother's death, came back to the young girl, and she
began to wish that she could be kinder to Susan Drummond, and that she
could overcome her dislike to Annie Forest. She longed to say something
about Annie to the little ladies, but they evidently did not wish to
allude to the subject. When she was going away, they gave her a small
parcel.

"You will kindly give this to your schoolfellow, Miss Forest, Hester,
dear," they both said, and then they kissed her, and said they hoped they
should see her again; and Hester got into the old-fashioned school
brougham, and held the brown paper parcel in her hand.

As she was going into the chapel that night, Mary Bell came up to her and
whispered:

"We have not got to the bottom of that mystery about Annie Forest yet.
Mrs. Willis can evidently make nothing of her, and I believe Mr. Everard
is going to talk to her after prayers to-night."

As she was speaking, Annie herself pushed rather rudely past the two
girls; her face was flushed, and her hair was even more untidy than was
its wont.

"Here is a parcel for you, Miss Forest," said Hester, in a much more
gentle tone than she was wont to use when she addressed this
objectionable schoolmate.

All the girls were now filing into the chapel, and Hester should
certainly not have presented the little parcel at that moment.

"Breaking the rules, Miss Thornton," said Annie; "all right, toss it
here." Then, as Hester failed to comply, she ran back, knocking her
schoolfellows out of place, and, snatching the parcel from Hester's hand,
threw it high in the air. This was a piece of not only willful audacity
and disobedience, but it even savored of the profane, for Annie's step
was on the threshold of the chapel, and the parcel fell with a noisy bang
on the floor some feet inside the little building.

"Bring me that parcel, Annie Forest," whispered the stern voice of the
head-mistress.

Annie sullenly complied; but when she came up to Mrs. Willis, her
governess took her hand, and pushed her down into a low seat a little
behind her.

CHAPTER XVI.

"AN ENEMY HATH DONE THIS."

The short evening service was over, and one by one, in orderly
procession, the girls left the chapel. Annie was about to rise to her
feet to follow h