still beneath his head, his face pressed to her soft hair and his free
arm flung about her.

Azalea stole away and hurried with the news to old Sally, who also crept
in and looked on them and stole away.

"Yas, she sure have saved his life," said Sally. "Heap o' times they
nevah do come out en that thar kin' o' sleep. I done seed sech before."

"Ef he have come to hisself, you reckon I bettah wake 'em up and give
her a leetle hot milk? She hain't eat nothin' sence yestiday."

"Naw, leave 'em be. No body nevah hain't starved in his sleep yit, I
reckon."

"He hain't eat nothin', neithah. He sure have been bad hurted."

The two women sat in the large room and talked in low tones, while at
intervals Azalea crept to the door and looked in on them.

At last the baby wailed out with lusty cry, which sounded through the
stillness of the house and roused Cassandra, but as she lifted her head,
David clung to her and drew her cheek to his lips.

"Are you hurt?" he murmured. In some strange way he had confused
matters, and thought it was she who had been shot.

"It's not me that's hurt," she said tenderly.

Azalea hurried away and returned with the warm milk she had prepared for
Cassandra, who took it and held it to David's lips.

"Drink it, Doctah. She won't touch anything till you do."

Then he obeyed, slowly drinking it all, his eyes fixed on Cassandra's
as a child looks up to his mother. As she rose, he held her with his
free hand.

"What is it? How long--" His voice sounded thin and weak. "Strange--I
can't lift this arm at all. Tell me--"

"Seems like I can't. When you are strong again, I will."

Feebly he tried to raise himself. "Don't, oh, don't, Doctah Thryng. If
you bleed again, you'll die," she wailed.

"Sit near me."

She drew a low chair and sat near him, as she had through the slow and
anxious hours, and again he drowsed off, only to open his eyes from time
to time as if to assure himself that she was still there. Again Azalea
brought her milk and white beaten biscuit, hot and sweet, and Cassandra
ate. When David opened his eyes to look at her, she smiled on him, but
would not let him talk to her.

Nevertheless his mind was busy trying to understand why he was lying
thus, and dimly the events of the last few days came back to him,
shadowy and confused. When he looked up and saw her smile, his heart was
satisfied, but when he closed his eyes again, a strange sense of tragedy
settled down upon him,