little
from the stretching strain. And, meanwhile, as she sat watching the
face on the pillow, grieving for the waning life, now and then she
raised her eyes to the other face on the opposite side of the bed,
and told herself that Fate, harsh as it was, was yet not altogether
unpitying. Although wounded and worn and sick at heart, Weldon was
with her, and intensely alive.

"Ethel!"

Bending forward, she laid her strong, firm hand upon the hand of the
Captain, noting, as she did so, that the finger tips were cold to
her own warm touch.

"Yes?" she said gently.

"You are here? It troubles me to see. Stay with me to the end,
Ethel. It won't be so very long."

She bowed her head; but the answer came firmly.

"I will stay."

There was a short silence. Then, gathering together all his
strength, the Captain went on quite steadily,--

"It won't be so very long, Ethel. I am sorry. I liked to live. I
have had a good time, and I had no idea that my good times were so
nearly over. Not that it would have made much difference, though.
And yet, when one comes to the end, all of a sudden, one finds a
great many things that are left unfinished."

She made no attempt to answer.

Gently he urged the final words upon her attention.

"There are always so many things left unfinished," he repeated.

"Yes," she said faintly.

Slowly, as if its weight dragged sorely upon his failing strength,
he raised her hand to the pillow and rested his cheek upon it.

"Don't cry, Ethel," he said then. "Of course, if I had lived, it
might have meant so much to us both."

Involuntarily she caught her breath and made a swift gesture, as if
to withdraw her hand. Then, with a hasty glance at Weldon, leaning
against the opposite wall, she controlled herself and allowed her
hand to rest where it was.

"It would have meant so much to all of us, Captain Frazer."

"Perhaps. But to you and me--Ethel, I can't go out of life and give
you up!" Pitifully, longingly, the blue eyes stared up at her face
through the growing shadows of waning day and waning life.
Longingly, although the questioning look had left them. In its place
was an infinite, contented love, an absolute trust.

The girl nerved herself to meet his eyes. Then she drew her own eyes
away, to give another hasty, appealing glance up into Weldon's
paling face. For him, as for her, the moment was all unexpected. For
him, as for her, there was need of all the reserve strength in life
to