. They began to be afraid of you, and he bade them leave at once.
So in the early morning we started."

"I see, I see." I looked into the pools of her eyes; I sheathed her
white hands in my brown ones, thrilling greatly at the contact of them.

"Tell me about it, child. Has he bothered you?"

"Oh, not so much. He thinks he has me safe enough, trapped, awaiting his
pleasure. But he's taken up with some woman of the town just now.
By-and-bye he'll turn his attention to me."

"Terrible! Terrible! Berna, you wring my heart. How can you talk of such
things in that matter-of-fact way--it maddens me."

An odd, hard look ridged the corners of her mouth.

"I don't know. Sometimes I'm surprised at myself how philosophical I'm
getting."

"But, Berna, surely nothing in this world would ever make you yield? O,
it's horrible! horrible!"

She leaned to me tenderly. She put my arms around her neck; she looked
at me till I saw my face mirrored in her eyes.

"Nothing in the world, dear, so long as I have you to love me and help
me. If ever you fail me, well, then it wouldn't matter much what became
of me."

"Even then," I said, "it would be too awful for words. I would rather
drag your body from that river than see you yield to him. He's a
monster. His very touch is profanation. He could not look on a woman
without cynical lust in his heart."

"I know, my boy, I know. Believe me and trust me. I would rather throw
myself from the bluff here than let him put a hand on me. And so long as
I have your love, dear, I'm safe enough. Don't fear. O, it's been
terrible not seeing you! I've craved for you ceaselessly. I've never
been out since we came here. They wouldn't let me. They kept in
themselves. He bade them. He has them both under his thumb. But now, for
some reason, he has relaxed. They're going to open a restaurant
downtown, and I'm to wait on table."

"No, you're not!" I cried, "not if I have anything to say in the matter.
Berna, I can't bear to think of you in that garbage-heap of corruption
down there. You must marry me--now."

"Now," she echoed, her eyes wide with surprise.

"Yes, right away, dear. There's nothing to prevent us. Berna, I love
you, I want you, I need you. I'm just distracted, dear. I never know a
moment's peace. I cannot take an interest in anything. When I speak to
others I'm thinking of you, you all the time. O, I can't bear it,
dearest; have pity on me: marry me now."

In an agony of suspense I wa