to her.

"Did you pray," he asked, "for me?"

"I prayed for all men and women--who love----"

He laid his hands on her shoulders and gazed down at her with all of his
heart in his sad young eyes. "There must be some way out of this," he
said. "Surely God can't be so cruel as to keep us apart. Why, we are so
young, dear one, and there's all of life before us--think of all the
years."

The look with which she met his glance had in it all the steadfastness
of awakened womanhood. "You said out there that I could be brave and
patient. Help me to be brave--big brother."

"Don't," he said, hoarsely; "don't call me that. It's got to be all or
nothing. But whatever comes, whether you marry me or marry Anthony--I'm
going to love you always. I'm going to love you until I die, Bettina."

CHAPTER XVIII

PENANCE

Miss Matthews' cold proved to be bronchitis, and Bettina insisted on
nursing her.

"Please let me," she said to Anthony the morning after her flight with
Justin. "I suppose I'm in disgrace, anyhow, and this shall be my
penance. Only it won't be very severe punishment, for I shall love to
take care of her."

"What good is penance if you aren't penitent? I'm perfectly sure that if
that young rascal should ask you to go again you'd go."

"It was glorious."

"But very dangerous."

She shrugged. "You do dangerous things every day. Doesn't he, Sophie?"

"Of course."

"That's different. I do such things to help others."

"And I do them to please myself."

"And to please Justin?" There was an impatient note in his voice. "I
have told him that he must not ask you again, Bettina."

"What did he say?"

"He didn't say a word." Anthony smiled at the memory. "He just looked at
me as if he would like to punch my head, and turned on his heel and left
me."

"Are you angry with him?" anxiously.

"He's angry with me."

"Oh, dear!" Betty sighed. "Sophie gave me a terrible lecture when I came
home last night; didn't you, Sophie? And now you and Justin have fallen
out, and I'm the cause of all the trouble. I'll go and look after Letty
Matthews, and you can learn to love me when I'm gone."

In spite of the lightness of her tone, there was a quiver in her voice
which brought both of them to her feet.

"My dear child----!"

"Betty dear----"

Bettina smiled at them with misty eyes. "Please let me go, and when I
come back everything will be straightened out--and we'll all
live--happy--ever after----"

Not