bit more miserable than
she'd been before, if that was possible; but it didn't matter much to
us. We were pretty tired ourselves that night, and so we got Aileen all
she wanted, and left her alone with him.

While we were away to meet her some one had taken the trouble to put up
a bit of a partition, separating that part of the cave from the other;
it was built up of stone--there was plenty about--and not so roughly
done either. It made Aileen feel a lot more comfortable. Of course there
was only one man who could have done it; and that was Starlight.

Chapter 39

Towards morning father went into a heavy sleep; he didn't wake till
the afternoon. Poor Aileen was able to get a doze and change her
dress. After breakfast, while we were having a bit of a chat, in walks
Starlight. He bowed to Aileen quite respectful, as he always did to a
woman, and then shook hands with her.

'Welcome to the Hollow, Miss Marston,' he said. 'I can't say how charmed
I am in one sense, though I regret the necessity which brought you
here.'

'I'm glad to come, and only for poor father's being so bad I could
delight in the life here.'

'How do you find your father?'

'He is asleep now, and perhaps the rest will do him good.'

'He may awake free from fever,' says Starlight. 'I took the risk of
giving him an opiate before you came, and I think the result has been
favourable.'

'Oh! I hope he will be better when he wakes,' says Aileen, 'and that I
shall not have to watch through another dreadful night of raving. I can
hardly bear it.'

'You must make your brothers take their share; it's not fair to you.'

'Thank you; but I feel as if I couldn't leave him to anybody but myself.
He seems so weak now; a little neglect might kill him.'

'Pardon me, Miss Marston; you overrate the danger. Depend upon it, your
respected parent will be quite a different man in a week, though it may
be a month or more before he is fully recovered. You don't know what a
constitution he has.'

'You have given me fresh hope,' she said. 'I feel quite cheered up--that
is' (and she sighed) 'if I could be cheerful again about anything.'

Here she walked into the cave and sat down by father to watch till
he awoke, and we all went out about our daily work, whatever it
was--nothing very wonderful, I daresay, but it kept us from thinking.

Starlight was right. As luck would have it, father woke up a deal better
than when he laid down. The fever had gone aw