ould be in its gorgeous autumn dress for some months
yet and the distances were cloaked in blue, promising the wayfarer a
heaven which receded with every step.

With a destination of her own, Helen was not daunted. Walking with her
light long stride, she passed the side road leading to Halkett's farm
and remembered how George and Zebedee, seated side by side, something
like figures on a frieze, had swung down that road to tend old Halkett.
Beyond the high fir-wood she came upon the fields where old Halkett had
grown his crops: here and there were the cottages of his hands, with
dahlias and staring children in the gardens, and before long other
houses edged the road and she saw the thronging roofs of the town.

It was Zebedee who chanced to open to her when she knocked and she saw a
grave face change to one of youth as he took her by the wrist to draw
her in.

"Do you always look like that when I'm not here?" she asked anxiously,
quickly, but he did not answer.

"It's you!" he said. "You!"

In the darkness of the passage they could hardly see each other, but he
had not loosed his grasp and with a deft turn of the wrist she thrust
her whole hand into his.

"I was tired of waiting for you," she said. "A whole week! I was afraid
you were never coming back!"

"You know I'd come back to you if I were dead."

"Yes, I know." She leaned towards him and laughed and, wrenching himself
free from the contemplation of her, he led her to his room. There he
shut the door and stood against it.

"I want to look at you. No, I don't think I'd better look at you." He
spoke in his quick usual way. "Come and sit down. Is that chair all
right? And here's a cushion for you, but I don't believe it's clean.
Everything looks dirty now that you are in the room. Helen, are you sure
it's you?"

"Yes. Are you sure you're glad? I want to sit and laugh and laugh, do
all the laughing I've never had. And I want to cry--with loud noises.
Which shall I do? Oh--I can't do either!"

"I've hardly ever seen you in a hat before. You must take it off. No,
let me find the pins. Now you're my Helen again. Sit there. Don't move.
Don't run away. I'm going to tell Eliza about tea."

She heard a murmur in the passage, the jingle of money, the front door
opened and shut and she knew the Eliza had been sent out to buy cakes.

"I had to get rid of her," Zebedee said. "I had to have you to myself."
He knelt before her. "I'm going to take off your gloves. Wh