u, and I lent her money. No small sum either----'

'Has she never paid it back?'

'Oh, yes; after a time. But I _always_ kept her secret--as much as I
knew.'

'But you've been telling me----'

'That was my duty--and I never had her full confidence.'

'Wasn't it natural she----'

'Well, all things considered, she might have wanted to tell me who was
responsible.'

'Oh, Aunt Lydia.'

'All she ever said was that she was ashamed'--Mrs. Heriot was fast
losing her temper and her fine feeling for the innocence of her
auditor--'ashamed that she "hadn't had the courage to resist"--not the
original temptation, but the pressure brought to bear on her "not to go
through with it," as she said.'

With a shrinking look the girl wrinkled her brows. 'You are being so
delicate--I'm not sure I understand.'

'The only thing you need understand,' said her aunt, irritably, 'is that
she's not a desirable companion for a young girl.'

There was a pause.

'When did you see her after--after----'

Mrs. Heriot made a slight grimace. 'I met her last winter at--of all
places--the Bishop's!'

'They're relations of hers.'

'Yes. It was while you were in Scotland. They'd got her to help with
some of their work. Now she's taken hold of ours. Your aunt and uncle
are quite foolish about her, and I'm debarred from taking any steps, at
least till the Shelter is out of hand.'

The girl's face was shadowed--even a little frightened. It was evident
she was struggling not to give way altogether to alarm and repulsion.

'I do rather wonder that after that, she can bring herself to talk
about--the unfortunate women of the world.'

'The effrontery of it!' said her aunt.

'Or--the courage!' The girl put her hand up to her throat as if the
sentence had caught there.

'Even presumes to set _me_ right! Of course I don't _mind_ in the least,
poor soul--but I feel I owe it to your dead mother to tell you about
her, especially as you're old enough now to know something about life.'

'And since a girl needn't be very old to suffer for her ignorance'--she
spoke slowly, moving a little away. But she stopped on the final
sentence: 'I _felt_ she was rather wonderful!'

'_Wonderful!_'

'To have lived through _that_, when she was--how old?'

Mrs. Heriot rose with an increased irritation. 'Nineteen or
thereabouts.'

'Five years younger than I!' Jean sat down on the divan and stared at
the floor. 'To be abandoned, and to come out of it like this!