out for you, so what you
are paid now is wages for your brutish work. Leave the room, I say; you
have no longer a right here, nor any claim, if indeed you ever had one,
for I tell you I don't believe you ever paid her a cent, even what you
owed her, and you shall not breathe the same air with her longer."

"Young woman, be careful!" thundered the manager, growing an irate
scarlet, as the fiercely uttered words rolled in upon him; but Olive met
his gaze with flashing, undaunted eyes, and then the good doctor
recovered from his speechless amaze and came between them, after which,
Bettine, trembling with awe and fright, let the two gentlemen out. Olive
dropped back into her seat, and through it all, Ernestine slept, her
thin hands folded over her quiet bosom, and an air of utter repose on
her face, as of one too near another world to heed struggles in this,
even though they reached her weary hearing.

So the night wore on, and save the doctor returning for a moment, utter
silence reigned. Olive never moved from her low seat by the bed, with
her face hid. Bettine dropped asleep in her chair, and Roger, over by
the window, found that his busy thoughts kept him awake for hours, but
that he finally grew drowsy, and at last dropped into a doze, with his
head against the casing.

As the city bell tolled the hour of three, Ernestine opened her eyes
slowly, with a weary air that seemed like regret, and looked about the
dimly lighted room, with only a half conscious air. Roger received a
slow wondering look, then Bettine, and then her eyes fell on the figure
by the bed, with crushed white flowers in her hair, and face bowed from
sight; but it seemed to matter little who they all were, for she made no
move and looked away beyond them all, with a dreamy air of lingering
stupor, that still held thoughts and memory in check. But presently a
brighter light of reason crept into the eyes that made them open wider
and look about once more at the three silent figures, with more wonder
and closer attention, and at last she put out her hand slowly, and
touched the bowed head beside her; and startled by the light pressure,
Olive raised her head quickly, and they looked at each other.

For a moment her heart stood still in terror, as the dark eyes rested on
her face, then there came a feeble, husky moan of delirious joy. "Olive!
Oh, Olive!" and Roger, wakened by the slight sound, sprang up, to find
Ernestine fainted entirely away, and Olive