\"Takeoffyourboots，Mr。Paine，\"heurged。\"Theoldlady’llfetchyouapairofmyslippersandsomesocksinaminute。She’llmakeyourwifecomf’table，too。She’sagreathandatmakin’folkscomf’table。Itellhershe’dmakeacakeoficefeeltohomeonahotstove。Shebeats——\"
The\"oldlady\"herselfinterruptedhim，enteringwithabottleinonehandandalampintheother。
\"Joshua！\"shesaid，warningly。
\"Well，whatisit，Betsy？\"
\"Becarefulhowyoutalk。\"
\"Talk！\"withawinkatme。\"Iwan’tgoin’tosaynothin’。\"
\"Yes，youwas。Mrs。Paine，youmustn’tmindhim。Heusedtogomateonafishin’schoonerand，fromallIcanlearn，theyuseprettystronglanguageaboardtheseboats。\"
\"Pickitupsameasapollparrot，\"cutinherhusband。\"Comesnaturalwhenyou’rehandlin’wettrawllineinFebruary。Can’tseemtogetnocomfortoutofanythingmilder。\"
\"He’sarealgood—heartedman，Joshuais，andaprofession’churchmember，buthedoesswearmore’nheoughtto。But，asItelltheminister，hedon’tmeannothin’byit。\"
\"Notadamnthing！\"saidMr。Atwood，reassuringly。Thebottle，itappeared，containedJamaicaginger，aliberaldoseofwhichMrs。
Atwoodinsisteduponourtakingasaprecautionagainstcatchingcold。
\"There’snothin’better，\"shesaid。
\"Youbetthereain’t！\"thisfromthelightkeeper。\"Abodycan’tgetwithinfortyfathomsofacoldwithaswallowofthatamidships。
It’shotterthan——\"
\"Joshua！\"
\"TheFourthofJuly，\"concludedherhusband，triumphantly。
\"Andnow，Mrs。Paine，\"wentontheladyofthehouse，\"yourroom’sallready。I’velaidoutsomedrythingsforyouonthebedandsomeofJoshua’s，too。Youandyourhusband——\"
Ithoughtithightimetoexplain。
\"Theladyisnotmywife，\"Isaid，quickly。
\"Sheain’t！Why，IthoughtJoshuasaid——\"
\"He——er——madeamistake。SheisMissColton，asummerresidentandneighborofmineinDenboro。\"
\"Sho！youdon’tsay！That’sjustlikeyou，Joshua！\"
\"Justlikeme！Well，how’dIknow？Ibegyourpardon，Miss，I’msure。Shan’tbegyourhus——ImeanMr。Paine’spardon；heoughttothankmeforthecompliment。Haw！haw！\"
MissColtonherselfmadethenextremark。
\"Ifmyroomisready，Mrs。Atwood，\"shesaid，，withoutevenaglanceinmydirection，\"IthinkIwillgotoit。IAMratherwet。\"
\"Wet！Landsakes，yes！Iguessyoube！Comerightin，Joshua，takethemclothesofyoursintoourroomandletMr。Paineput’emon。\"
Herhusbandobeyedorders。AfterIwasaloneintheroomtowhichheconductedmeandenjoyingtheluxuryofdrysocks，Iheardhimjustifyinghismistakeinstentoriantones。
\"Icouldn’thelpit，Betsy，\"Iheardhimsay。\"Itookitforgrantedtheywasmarried。WhenIhovealongsidethatmotorboattheywasa—settin’closeuptogetherinthesternsheetsandso，ofcourse，Ithought——\"
\"Youhadn’tanybusinessto。Youmadethatpooryoungladyblushsomethin’dreadful。Mostlikelythey’rejustkeepin’company——orengaged，orsomethin’。Yououghttobemorecareful。\"
Iwonderediftheyoungladyherselfheardallthis。Ididn’tseehowshecouldhelpit。
Kinder—heartedpeoplethanthesetwoneverlived，Idobelieve。Itwasafterthreeinthemorning，bothhadbeenupallnight，wewereabsolutestrangerstothem，andyet，withoutawordofcomplaint，theygavetheremainderofthehoursbeforedaylighttomakinguscomfortable。WhenIdressedasmuchofmyselfasasuitofMr。
Atwood’s——hisSundaybest，Ipresume——wouldcover，and，withapairofcarpetslippersaboutthesizeandshapeoftoyferryboatsonmyfeet，emergedfromthebedroom，Ifoundthetablesetinthekitchen，theteapotsteamingandMrs。Atwoodcooking\"spiderbread\"
onthestove。WhenMissColton，lookingsurprisinglypresentable——
consideringthatshe，too，waswearingborrowedapparelfoursizestoolargeforher——madeherappearance，wesatdowntoasimplemealwhich，Ithink，wasthemostappetizingIevertasted。
TheAtwoodswereburstingwithcuriosityconcerningourgettingadriftinthemotorboat。Idescribedtheadventurebriefly。WhenItoldofLute’sforgetfulnessinthematterofgasolenethelightkeeperthumpedthetable。
\"There，bygodfreys！\"heexclaimed。\"Icouldseeitcomin’！Thatfeller’sforalltheworldlikeacookIhadonceaboardtheEzryH。Jones。Thatcookwasthebiggestnumskullthateverdrawedthebreathoflife。Alwaysforgettin’somethin’，hewas，andalwaysatthemostinconvenienttime。Once，ifyou’llbelieveit，Ihadaskipperofanothervesselcomeaboardand，wishin’tobesortofhospitable，asyoumightsay，Iofferedhimaglassofrum。\"
\"Joshua！\"
\"Oh，it’sallright，Betsy。Thiswasyearsago。I’masgoodateetotalernowasyoube，andIneverwaswhatyou’dcallasoak。
ButI’veSEENfellers——Why，Iknewoneoncethatusedtogotobedinthedark。Hewassofullofalcoholhedidn’tdasttolightamatchfearhe’dcatcha—fire。Fact！Hewaseighty—oddthen，andhelivedtobenighahundred。Preserved，youunderstand，sameasoneofthemspecimensinamuseum。He’dkeptforever，Ical’late，ifhehadn’tfelloffthedock。Thewaterfixedhim；hewasn’tusedtoit。Hewasthewust——\"
\"Nevermindhim。Sticktothecook。\"
\"Yes，yes。Well，Isentthatcookfortherumandwhenhefetchedit，Ithoughtitsmeltfunny。AndwhenITASTEDit——godfreys！
’Twasbayrum；yes，sir，bayrum！sameastheyputonyourhair。
Yousee，he’dforgottobuyanyrumwhenwewasinourlastportand，havin’thebayrumalonghefetchedthat。’TwasSOMEkindofrumandthatwasenoughforhim。IWASmad，butthatvisitin’
skipper，hedidn’tcare。Drankitdownandsmackedhislips。’I’maStateofMaineman，’hesays，’andthat’saprohibitionstate。
Thistasteslikehome，’hesays。’Ifyoudon’tmindI’llhelpmyselftoanother。’’Idon’tmind，’saysI，’butI’msorryIain’tgotanyhair—ile。IfIhadyoumighthaveabarber—shoptoddy。’
Yes，sir！Ho—ho！that’swhatIsaid。Buthedidn’tmind。Hewas——\"
Andsoon。Theyarnswerenotelegant，but，ashetoldthem，theywerefunny。MabelColtonlaughedasheartilyastherestofus。
Sheappearedtobeinfinespirits。ShetalkedwiththeAtwoods，answeredtheirquestions，andatethehot\"spiderbread\"andbutterasifshehadnevertastedanythingasgood。Butwithmeshewouldnottalk。WheneverIaddressedaremarktoher，sheturneditwithalaughandhernextspeechwasprettycertaintobeaddressedtothelightkeeperorhiswife。Asforouradventureinthelaunch，thatshetreatedasajoke。
\"Wan’tyouawfulscaredwhenthatsquallstrucksosudden？\"
inquiredMrs。Atwood。
\"Dreadfully。\"
\"Humph！\"thisfromJoshua；\"Ical’lateMr。Painewassomescarttoo。Whatdidyoudo，Mr。Paine？\"
\"Iriggedthatcanvasontheoarassoonaspossible，\"Ianswered。
\"Um—hm。Thatwasgoodjudgment。\"
\"Tellme，Mr。Atwood，\"askedtheyoungladyinnocently，\"areallseafaringmenverydictatorialundersuchcircumstances？\"
\"Very——which？\"
\"Imeandotheyorderpeopleaboutandmakethemdoallsortsofthings，whethertheywishtoornot？\"
\"Sartin。Godfreys！IneveraskednobodywhattheywishedaboardtheEzryH。Jones。\"
\"Anddotheytellthemto’sitdownandkeepstill’？\"
\"Gen’rallytheytell’emtogetupandkeepmovin’。Iftheydon’ttheystart’emprettylively——witharope’send。\"
\"Isee。Evenwhentheyare——ladies？\"
\"Ladies？Godfreys！weneverhadbutonewomanaboardtheEzry。
Hadtheskipper’swifeonev’yage，butnobodyeverorderedheraroundanytospeakof。Shewassixfeettallandweighedtwohundred。Allhandswasscarttodeathofher。\"
\"Supposeshehadbeenorderedto’sitdownandkeepstill’；whatdoyouthinkwouldhavehappened？\"
\"Don’tknow。If’twasoneofthehandsIguesslikelyshe’dhavehovehimoverboard。If’twastheskipperIshouldn’twonderifshe’dhaveknockedhimdown——aftershegotoverthesurpriseofhisdarin’todosuch，athing。ShehadHIMtrained，Itellye！\"
\"MissColtonthinksmeratherabully，Iamafraid，\"Isaid。\"I
didorderheraboutratherroughly。\"
Mr。Atwoodburstintoalaugh。\"ThatEzryJoneswomanwastheskipper’swife，\"hedeclared。\"Makesalotofdiff’rence，thatdoes。IwasconsiderableofabullymyselfaforeBetsygotmeontheparson’sbooks。NowI’mthemostpeaceablecrittereveryousee。Yourturn’scomin’，MissColton。Allyougottodoisbepatient。\"
\"Joshua！\"saidMrs。Atwood，inmildreproof。\"Youmustn’tmindhistalk，MissColton。He’saterriblejoker。\"
MissColtonchangedthesubject。Shedidnotsomuchaslookatmeagainduringthemealand，afteritwasover，shewenttoherroom，explainingthatshewasverytiredandwouldtrytogetalittlesleep。
Ihaddiscoveredthatthelighthouse，beingclosetothemainland，wasequippedwithatelephone。NowIbeggedpermissiontouseit。
IcalledupDenboroandaskedtobeconnectedwiththeColtonhome。
IfeltverysurethattherewouldbenosleepinthebighousethatnightandIwishedtorelievetheiranxietyandtosendwordtoMother。Mr。Coltonhimselfansweredmycall。
IannouncedmyidentityandexplainedwhereIwasandthathisdaughterwasinmycareandperfectlysafe。
\"ThankGod！\"wastheferventexclamationattheotherendofthewire，andthevoicewhichuttereditwasshakingwithemotion。
\"Staywhereyouareamoment，Paine。Letmetellmywife。Sheisalmostcrazy。Holdthewire。\"
Iheldthewireandwaited。ThenextvoicewhichreachedmyearswasMrs。Colton’s。Sheaskedadozenquestions，oneaftertheother。WasMabelsafe？WasIsureshewassafe？Wasn’tthepoorchildalmostdeadafterallshe’dbeenthrough？Whathadhappened？
Whatwasshedoingawayoverthereinthatdreadfulplace？WhyhadItakenherthere？
IansweredaswellasIcould，tellingbrieflyofthecollisioninthefogandwhatfollowed。Theexplanationappearedtoberatherunsatisfactory。
\"Youtakethewire，James，\"Iheardtheladysay。\"Ican’tmakeitallout。Mabelisatsomehorridlighthouseandthereisnokerosene，orsomething。Thepoorchild！Alonethere，withthatman！Tellhimshemustbebroughthomeatonce。Itisdreadfulforher！Thinkwhatshemusthavesuffered！AndwithHIM！Whatwillpeoplesay？Tellhimtobringherhome！Theidea！Idon’tbelieveaword——\"
\"Hello——hello，Paine！\"Coltonwasatthe’phoneoncemore。\"CanyougetMabel——MissColton，overtoWellmouth，doyouthink？\"
\"Yes。IwillgetaboatassoonasIcan。MissColtonisinherroom，asleepIhope。SheisverytiredandIthinksheshouldrestuntildaylight。IwillgethertoWellmouthintimeforthemorningtrain。\"
\"Nevermindthetrain。I’llcomeafterherintheauto。Iwillstartnow。Iwillmeetyouatthelanding——atthewharf，ifthereisone。\"
\"Verywell。WillyoubegoodenoughtosendwordtomymotherthatIamsafeandsound？Shewillbeworried。\"
\"Yes，yes，I’llsendword。TellMabeltobecarefulandnottakecold……Yes，Henrietta，Iamattendingtoeverything。Good—
by，Paine。\"
Thatwasall，notawordofthanks。IdidnotexpectthanksandI
madeallowancesforthestateofmindatthemansion；butthattelephoneconversation，particularlyMrs。Colton’sshareinit，castagloomovermyspirits。IdidnotcaretohearmoreofMr。
Atwood’syarnsandjokes。Iwenttomyownroom，butIdidnotsleep。
Athalf—pastfiveIwasastiragain。Thelightkeeper，itappeared，hadanauxiliaryengineinacatboatwhichheownedandcouldletmehaveasufficientsupplyofgasolenetofilltheComfort’stank。
Whenthiswasdone——andittookalongtime，forJoshuainsisteduponhelpingandhewasprovokinglyslow——IreturnedtothesittingroomandaskedMrs。AtwoodtocallMissColton。
\"Landsakes！\"wasthecheeryanswer，\"Ididn’thavetocallher。
She’sbeenupforfifteenminutes。Saidshewasgoin’totakeacruisearoundthelighthouse。Ical’lateyou’llfindherouttheresomewheres。Goandfetchherhere。Youtwomusthaveabite——acupofhotcoffeeandabiledegg，anyhow——aforeyouleave。Yes，youmust。Ishan’tlistentoanofromeitherofyou。\"
Iwentoutandcrossedthesandyyardtothewhitewashedlighthouse。
TherewasnosignofMissColtonintheyard，butthedoorofthelighthousewasopenandIentered。Noonethere。Thestairs，windingupward，invitedmetoclimbandIdidso。Thelittleroomwiththebiglantern，thelatternowcoveredwithawhitecloth，wasuntenantedalso。Ilookedoutofthewindow。Thereshewas，ontheirongallerysurroundingthetopofthetower，leaningontherailandgazingoutoverthewater。Shehadnotheardme。ForamomentIstoodthere，watchingher。
ShewasnotwearingMrs。Atwood’sgownnow，butherown，wrinkledandstainedfromitslastnight’sdrenchinginsaltwater，butdrynow。Shewasbareheadedandherbrownhairwastossingintheseabreeze。Thesun，butalittlewayabovethehorizonandshiningthroughthemorninghaze，edgedherdelicateprofilewithalineofredgold。Ihadneverseenherlookmorebeautiful，ormorearistocraticandunapproachable。Thememoryofournightinthelaunchseemedmorelikeanunbelievabledreamthanever，andtheawakeningmorecruel。ForIwasawakenow。WhatIhadheardoverthe’phonehadawakenedmethoroughly。Thereshouldbenomoredreaming。
Isteppedoutuponthegallery。
\"Goodmorning，\"Isaid。
Sheturnedquickly，andIheardhercatchherbreathwithalittlegasp。
\"Ibegpardon，\"saidI；\"I’mafraidIstartledyou。\"
Shewasstartled，thatwasevident，and，itseemedtome，atrifleembarrassed。Buttheembarrassmentwasbutmomentary。
\"Goodmorning，\"shesaid。\"Howverysilentyoucanbewhenyouchoose，Mr。Paine。Howlonghaveyoubeenstandingthere，pray？\"
\"Onlyamoment。Icametocallyoutobreakfast。\"
\"Tobreakfast？\"
\"Yes，Mrs。AtwoodinsistsuponourbreakfastingbeforeItakeyouashore。\"
\"Oh！Whydidn’tyoucallme？Iwouldhavecomedown。\"
\"IdidnotseeyouuntilIreachedthelanternroom。Mysilencewasnotpremeditated。Imadenoiseenough，orsoitseemedtome；
butyouweresowrappedinyourthoughts——\"
\"Nonsense！\"Sheinterruptedmealmostsharply。\"Iwasnot’wrapped’inanything，exceptthebeautyofthisview。ItIS
beautiful，isn’tit？\"
\"Very，\"Ianswered，butfearIwasnotlookingattheview。Itmaybethatshenoticedthis，forshesaid：
\"Youhavecomeintoyourownagain，Isee。SohaveI。\"
Sheindicatedhergownwithasmileandagesture。Ilaughed。
\"Yes，\"Isaid。\"IhavereturneduntoJoshuathatwhichwashis。\"
\"Youshouldhavekeptit。Youhavenoideawhatapicturesquelightkeeperyoumake，Mr。Paine。\"
Somehoworotherthisharmlessjokehurt。
\"Yes，\"Ianswered，drily，\"thatisaboutmymeasure，Ipresume。\"
Hereyestwinkled。\"Ithoughtthemeasureratherscant，\"sheobserved，mischievously。\"IwishImighthaveasnap—shotofyouinthat——uniform。\"
\"Iamafraidtheopportunityforthatispast。\"
\"Butit——\"withalittlebubbleofmirth，\"itwassofunny。\"
\"Nodoubt。IamsorryIcan’tobligeyouwithaphotograph。\"
Shelookedatme，bitingherlip。
\"Isyourbumpofhumoradent，Mr。Paine？\"sheinquired。\"Iamafraiditmustbe。\"
\"Youmayberight。Idon’tappreciateajokeaskeenlyas——well，asMr。Carver，forinstance。\"
Sheturnedherbackuponmeandledthewaytothedoor。
\"Shallwegotobreakfast？\"sheasked，inadifferenttone。
Breakfastwasasilentmeal，sofaraswetwowereconcerned。TheAtwoods，however，talkedenoughtomakeupthedeficiency。
Aswerosefromthetabletheyoungladyturnedtothelightkeeper。
\"Mr。Atwood，\"shesaid，\"IpresumeyouaregoingtobekindenoughtotakemetoWellmouth？\"
\"Why，Miss，I——Iwan’tcal’latin’to。Mr。Painehere，he’sgotallthegasheneedsnowandhe’lltakeyouoverinhislaunch。\"
\"Oh！Butyouwillgo，ifIaskyouto？\"
\"Sartinsure。\"
\"YouhavebeensoverykindthatIdisliketoaskanotherfavor；
butIhopedyouwouldsendatelegramforme。MyfatherandmotherwillbeverymuchalarmedandImustwirethematonce。Youwillhavetosendit’collect，’for，\"witharuefulsmile，\"Ihaven’tmypursewithme。\"
\"Landsakes！that’llbeallright。Gladtohelpyouout。\"
Iputinaword。\"Itwillnotbenecessary，\"Isaid，impatiently。
\"Ihavemoneyenough，MissColton。\"
Iwasignored。
\"Thankyousomuch，Mr。Atwood。Youwillcomewithmeandlookoutforthetelegram？\"
\"Yes。Yes——yes。ButIdon’tseewhatyouneedtosendnotelegramfor。Mr。Painehere，hetelephonedtoyourfolkslastnight。\"
ShelookedatmeandthenatJoshua。
\"Lastnight？\"sherepeated。
\"Whyyes——orthismornin’afteryou’dgonetobed。Hewasdeadsetonit。Icouldseehewas’mosttiredandworeout，buthewouldn’tresttillhe’d’phonedyourfolksandtold’emyouwassafeandsound。Didn’tseemtocarenothin’abouthimself，buthewasboundyourpaandmashouldn’tworry。\"
Sheturnedtome。
\"Didyou？\"sheasked。
\"Yes，\"Ianswered。\"YourfatheristomeetusattheWellmouthwharf。\"
\"Whydidn’tyoutellme？\"
\"Iintendedto。ImeanttotellyouwhenIsawyouinthelighthouse，but——Iforgotit。\"
Shesaidnomore，butwhenJoshua，hatandbootson，metusatthedoorshespoketohim。
\"Youneednotgo，Mr。Atwood，\"shesaid。\"Itwillnotbenecessary——now。\"
\"Godfreys！I’djustassoonasnot。Ruther，ifanything。\"
Hehurrieddowntothebeach。Iwasabouttofollowwhenahandtouchedmyarm。Iturned，tofindapairofbrowneyes，mistybutwonderful，lookingintomine。
\"Thankyou，\"saidMissColton。
\"Don’tmentionit。\"
\"ButIshall。Itwasthoughtfulandkind。Ihadforgotten，or——atleast——Itookitforgrantedtherewasno’phonehere。Butyoudidnotforget。Itwasthoughtful，but——itwaslikeyou。\"
Iwasbreathinghard。Icouldnotlookather。
\"Don’t，\"Isaid，roughly。\"Itwasnothing。Anyonewithcommonsensewouldhavethoughtofitanddoneit，ofcourse。\"
\"Ididnot。Butyou——Oh，itwaslikeyou！Alwayssomeoneelseandneveryourself。Youwerewornout。Youmusthavebeen，after——\"
withashudder——\"lastnight。Oh，Ihavesomuchtothankyoufor！I——\"
\"Comeon！Heaveahead！\"ItwasMr。Atwood，bellowingfromthebeach。\"AllaboardforWellmouthandpintsalongshore。\"
Betsyappearedinthedoorbehindus。
\"Allready，beyou？\"sheasked。
Icouldnothaveanswered，butmycompanionwasoncemoreascalmandcoolasthemorningitself。
\"Allready，\"sheanswered。\"Good—by，Mrs。Atwood。Andthankyouoverandoveragain。Youhavebeensokind。\"Withasuddenflashofenthusiasm。\"Everyoneiskind。Itisabeautifulworld。
Good—by。\"
SheranlightlydowntheslopeandIfollowed。
ThetriptoWellmouthwasofbutahalfhour’sduration。Atwoodtalkedallthetime。MissColtonlaughedathisstoriesandseemedtobewithoutacare。Shescarcelylookedatmeduringthepassage，andifshecaughtmelookingatherandourglancesmetsheturnedaway。Onthewharfwasabigautomobile，surroundedbyagapingcrowdofsmallboysand’longshoreloafers。
Wedrewupbesidethelanding。Ourfemininepassengersprangashoreandranupthesteps，tobeseizedinherfather’sarms。
Mrs。Coltonwastherealso，babblinghysterically。Iwatchedandlistenedforamoment。ThenIstartedtheengine。
\"Shoveoff，\"Iordered。Thelightkeeperwasastonished。
\"Ain’tyegoin’ashore？\"hedemanded。
\"No，\"Ianswered，curtly。\"I’mgoinghome。Shoveoff。\"
ThelaunchwasfiftyfeetfromthepierwhenIheardashout。
Coltonwasstandingonthewharfedge，wavinghishand。Besidehimstoodhisdaughter，hermother’sarmsabouther。
\"Here！Paine！\"shoutedColton。\"Comeback！Comebackandgohomewithusinthecar。Thereisplentyofroom。\"
Ididnotanswer。
\"Comeback！Comeback，Paine！\"heshoutedagain。Mrs。Coltonraisedherheadfromherdaughter’sshoulder。
\"James！James！\"shecautioned，withouttakingthetroubletolowerhervoice，\"don’tmakeascene。Lethimgoinhisdreadfulboat，ifheprefersto。\"
\"Paine！\"criedherhusbandagain。
\"Imustlookoutforthelaunch，\"Ishouted。\"Ishallbehomealmostassoonasyouare。Good—by。\"
Ileftthelightkeeperathisisland。Herefusedtoacceptacentfromme，exceptinpaymentforthegasolene，anddeclaredhehadhada\"fust—ratenightofit。\"
\"Comeandseeusagain，Mr。Paine，\"hesaid。\"Comeanytimeandfetchyourladyalong。She’sagoodone，sheis，andnice—lookin’，don’ttalk！You’realuckycritter，didyouknowit？Haw！haw！
Good—by。\"
TheComfortnevermadebettertimethanonthathomewardtrip。I
anchoredherathermoorings，wentashoreintheskiff，andhasteneduptothehouse。Itwaspastteno’clockandIwouldbeoveranhourlateatthebank。Afinebeginningformyfirstdayinchargeoftheinstitution！
Thedining—roomdoorwasopen，butnoonewasinthedining—room。
Thekitchendoor，however，wasshutandfrombehinditIheardDorinda’svoice。
\"Youcangetrightoutofthishouse，\"shesaid。\"Idon’tcareifyou’vegotamortgageontherestoftheCape！Youain’tgotoneonthishouse，andyounornobodyelseshallstayinitandtalkthatway。There’sthedoor。\"
\"Dorindy！\"wailedanothervoice——Lute’s。\"Youmustn’ttalkso——tohim！Don’tyourealize——\"
\"IrealizethatifIhadahusbandinsteadofajellyfishI
shouldn’thavetotalk。Bestill，you！\"
Athirdvoicemadeitselfheard。
\"Allright，\"itgrowled。\"Iain’tanxioustostayhereanylongerthanisnecessary。Bein’anhonest，decentman，I’mashamedtobeseenhereasitis。Butyoucantellthatlow—livedsneak，RosPaine，that——\"
Iopenedthedoor。
\"Youmaytellhimyourself，CaptainDean，\"saidI。\"Whatisit？\"
CHAPTERXX
Myunexpectedentrancecausedasensation。Lute，sittingontheedgeofoneofthekitchenchairs，anagonizedexpressiononhisface，startedsoviolentlythathealmostlosthisbalance。
Dorinda，standingwithherbacktowardme，turnedquickly。CaptainJedediahDean，hishandontheknobofthedooropeningtothebackyard，showedtheleastevidenceofsurprise。Hedidnotstart，nordidhespeak，butlookedatmewithacountenanceasgrimandsetandimmovableasifithadbeencastinamould。
Lute，characteristicallyenough，utteredthefirstword。
\"Bytime！\"hegasped。\"It’sRoshimself！Ros——Ros，youknowwhathesays？\"Hepointedashakingfingeratthecaptain。\"Hesaysyou——\"
\"Keepstill！\"Dorindastruckherpalmstogetherwithaslap，asifherhusbandhadbeenwhatsheoftencalledhim，aparrot。Then，withoutanotherglanceinhisdirection，shesteppedbackwardandtookherstandbesideme。
\"I’mrealgladtoseeyouhomesafeandsound，Roscoe，\"shesaid，calmly。
\"Thankyou，Dorinda。Now，CaptainDean，Ibelieveyouweresendingamessagetomejustnow。Iamhereandyoucandeliverit。Whatisityouhavetosay？\"
BeforehecouldanswerDorindaspokeoncemore。
\"Lute，\"shesaid，\"youcomealongwithmeintothedinin’—room。\"
\"But——but，Dorindy，I——\"
\"Youcomewithme。Thisain’tanyofmybusinessanymore，anditneverwasanyofyours。Come！move！\"
Lutemoved，butsoslowlythathisprogresstothedoortookalmostafullminute。Hiswifepaidnoheedtothepleadinglookshegaveherandstoodmajesticallywaitinguntilhepassedherandcrossedthesill。Thensheturnedtome。
\"Ifyouwantme，justspeak，\"shesaid。\"Ishallbeinthedining—
room。Thereain’tnoneedforComforttoknowaboutthis。Shedoesn’tknowthatyou’vebeenawayandhasn’tbeenworriedatall。
I’lllookoutforher。Lute’llbewithme，soyouneedn’tfretabouthim，either。\"
Sheclosedthedoor。
\"Now，CaptainDean，\"Irepeated，\"whatisityouhavetosay？\"
Thecaptain’sgrimmouthtwistedinasavagesneer。
\"YouknowwhatI’mgoin’tosayaswellasIdo，\"heanswered。
\"Possibly，butyouhadbettersayit。\"
\"Itwon’ttakemelong。You’vesoldthatShoreLanelandtoJimColton，ain’tyou？\"
\"Yes。\"