." And
laughing at her supposed happy professional allusion, the lady withdrew.

Diana flew up the stairs to her own room. She did not debate much the
question whether she ought to see Evan; it came to her rather as a
thing that she _must_ do; there was no question in the case. However,
perhaps the question only lay very deep down in her consciousness, for
the justification presented itself, that to refuse to see him, would be
to confess both to his sister and himself that there was danger in it.
Diana never could confess that, whatever the fact. So, answering dumbly
the doubt that was as wordless, without stopping a moment she caught up
her sleeping baby out of its cradle, and drawing the cradle after her
went into her husband's study. Basil was there, she knew, at work. He
looked up as she came in. Diana drew the cradle near to him, and
carefully laid the still sleeping, fair and fat little bundle from her
arms down in it again; this was done gently and deliberately enough;
no hurry and no perturbation. Then she stood upright.

"Basil, will you take care of her? He is come."

The minister looked up into his wife's face; he knew what she meant.
And he felt as he looked at her, how far she was from him. There was no
smile on Diana's lips, indeed; on the contrary, an intensity of
feelings that were not pleasurable; and yet, and yet, he who has looked
for the light of love in an eye and missed it long, knows it when he
sees it, even though it be not for him. The four eyes met each other
steadily.

"Shall I see him?" Diana asked.

Basil stretched out his hand to her. "I can trust you, Diana."

She put her cold hand in his for a minute and hurried away. Then, as
she reached the other room, she heard in the hall below a step, the
step she had not heard for years; and her heart made one spring back
over the interval. In the urgency of action, Diana's colour had hardly
changed until now; now she turned deadly white, and for one instant
sank on her knees by her bedside with her heart full of a mute,
unformed prayer for help. It was fearful to go on, but she must go on
now; she must see Evan; he was there; questions were done; and as she
went down-stairs, while her face was white, and pain almost confused
her senses, there was a stir of keen joy at her heart--fierce, like
that of a wild beast which has been robbed of its prey but has got it
again. She tried for self-command, and as one mean towards it forced
herself to go