After a while Pierre looked up at Prosper Gael. All the patience and
the hunger and the beauty of his love possessed his face. There was
simply no room in his heart for any lesser thing.

"Stranger," he said in the grave and gentle Western speech, "I'll have
to ask you to leave me with my wife."

Prosper made a curious, silent gesture of self-despair and went out,
feeling his way before him.

It was half an hour later when the doctor came softly to the door and
held back the curtain in his hand. He did not say anything and, after
a silent minute, he let fall the curtain and moved softly away. He was
reassured as to the success of his experiment. He had seen Joan's
face.

THE END

End of Project Gutenberg's The Branding Iron, by Katharine Newlin Burt

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