have led an evil life, I know
it, but for your sake, for your sake, if you will pity me, I will do
anything. I will be anything you bid me. But do not hate me. For the
love of God, by the mercy of Christ the Saviour, do not cast me utterly
away from you. Do not hate me."

He crawled forward, and clutched the bottom of her skirt with his hand.
With a swift movement she snatched it from his grasp.

"I do hate you," she cried, "and I shall always hate you. From this out
I shall always hope and pray and strive to get to heaven when I die,
not for the love of the saints or because I think that I shall be happy
there, but just because I shall be safe from the sight of you, for you
will surely be in hell."

She turned and walked down the path they had ascended together. She left
him grovelling on the ground, his face slobbered with tears and grimy
with the clay his hands rubbed over it.

CHAPTER XIX

The boat sped seawards. The wind had freshened since the morning, and
worked round after the sun, as the wind does in settled weather. It blew
now from the south-east, and the boat reached out with a free sheet. Una
sat in the stern and held the tiller. Her eyes glistened with excitement
and delight. At her feet, on the floor boards of the boat, sat Neal,
dripping after his swim out of the cave. The sun shone warm on him, and
he had Una close to him. He was safe at last, freed from the terrible
anxiety and fears. He had life before him--a glad, good thing, yet there
was more sorrow than joy in his face. In an hour, or less than an hour,
he must say farewell to Una. He felt that he would gladly have gone back
to the gloom of the cave for the sake of a brief visit from her every
day. He would have accepted the life of a hunted animal rather than
part, for years perhaps, from Una. He was sure that he had never known
the fulness of his love for her until this hour of parting. His eyes
never left her face. Now and then, when she could spare attention from
her steering, she answered his glances. In her face there was no sorrow
at all, only merry delight and the anticipation of more joy. "I have
brought you a suit of my clothes, and some change of linen," said
Maurice. "I have them in a bundle here, done up in a great sheet. Hullo!
there are two bundles. I didn't notice that you had brought a second
one, Brown-Eye. You'll not leave me a rag to my back if you give Neal
two suits."

"It's all right, Maurice," said Una, "the se