\"Well，that’sgood，atanyrate，\"hervisitorrepliedwithadeterminedeffortatcheerfulness。Then，turningtothefire，headdedblankly，\"Ifyouwanthim。\"
\"OfcourseIwanthim。IwouldneverhaveaskedsuchathingofhimifIhadn’twantedhimagreatdeal。It’saveryexpensivetrip。\"Theaspokeseverely。Thenshewenton，inamildertone。\"Hedoesn’tsayanythingaboutthemoney，butIthinkhiscomingmeansthathecanletmehaveit。\"
Fredwasstandingbeforethemantel，rubbinghishandstogethernervously。\"Probably。Youarestilldeterminedtocallonhim？\"HesatdowntentativelyinthechairTheahadindicated。\"Idon’tseewhyyouwon’tborrowfromme，andlethimsignwithyou，forinstance。Thatwouldconstituteaperfectlyregularbusinesstransaction。Icouldbringsuitagainsteitherofyouformymoney。\"
Theaturnedtowardhimfromthedesk。\"Wewon’ttakethatupagain，Fred。IshouldhaveadifferentfeelingaboutitifIwentonyourmoney。InawayIshallfeelfreeronDr。Archie’s，andinanotherwayIshallfeelmorebound。
Ishalltryevenharder。\"Shepaused。\"Heisalmostlikemyfather，\"sheaddedirrelevantly。
\"Still，heisn’t，youknow，\"Fredpersisted。\"Itwouldn’tbeanythingnew。I’veloanedmoneytostudentsbefore，andgotitback，too。\"
\"Yes；Iknowyou’regenerous，\"Theahurriedoverit，\"butthiswillbethebestway。HewillbehereonFridaydidItellyou？\"
\"Ithinkyoumentionedit。That’srathersoon。MayIsmoke？\"hetookoutasmallcigarettecase。\"Isup—
poseyou’llbeoffnextweek？\"heaskedashestruckamatch。
\"JustassoonasIcan，\"sherepliedwitharestlessmove—
mentofherarms，asifherdark—bluedressweretootightforher。\"ItseemsasifI’dbeenhereforever。\"
\"Andyet，\"theyoungmanmused，\"wegotinonlyfour
daysago。Factsreallydon’tcountformuch，dothey？It’sallinthewaypeoplefeel：eveninlittlethings。\"
Theawinced，butshedidnotanswerhim。Sheputthetelegrambackinitsenvelopeandplaceditcarefullyinoneofthepigeonholesofthedesk。
\"Isuppose，\"Fredbroughtoutwitheffort，\"thatyourfriendisinyourconfidence？\"
\"Healwayshasbeen。Ishallhavetotellhimaboutmy—
self。IwishIcouldwithoutdraggingyouin。\"
Fredshookhimself。\"Don’tbotheraboutwhereyoudragme，please，\"heputin，flushing。\"Idon’tgive——\"
hesubsidedsuddenly。
\"I’mafraid，\"Theawentongravely，\"thathewon’tunderstand。He’llbehardonyou。\"
Fredstudiedthewhiteashofhiscigarettebeforeheflickeditoff。\"Youmeanhe’llseemeasevenworsethanIam。Yes，IsupposeIshalllookverylowtohim：afifth—
ratescoundrel。Butthatonlymattersinsofarasithurtshisfeelings。\"
Theasighed。\"We’llbothlookprettylow。Andafterall，wemustreallybejustaboutasweshalllooktohim。\"
Ottenburgstartedupandthrewhiscigaretteintothegrate。\"ThatIdeny。Haveyoueverbeenreallyfrankwiththispreceptorofyourchildhood，evenwhenyouWEREachild？Thinkaminute，haveyou？Ofcoursenot！Fromyourcradle，asIoncetoldyou，you’vebeen`doingit’ontheside，livingyourownlife，admittingtoyourselfthingsthatwouldhorrifyhim。You’vealwaysdeceivedhimtotheextentoflettinghimthinkyoudifferentfromwhatyouare。Hecouldn’tunderstandthen，hecan’tunder—
standnow。Sowhynotspareyourselfandhim？\"
Sheshookherhead。\"Ofcourse，I’vehadmyownthoughts。Maybehehashadhis，too。ButI’veneverdoneanythingbeforethathewouldmuchmind。Imustputmyselfrightwithhim，——asrightasIcan，——tobegin
over。He’llmakeallowancesforme。Healwayshas。ButI’mafraidhewon’tforyou。\"
\"Leavethattohimandme。Itakeityouwantmetoseehim？\"Fredsatdownagainandbeganabsentlytotracethecarpetpatternwithhiscane。\"Attheworst，\"hespokewanderingly，\"Ithoughtyou’dperhapsletmegoinonthebusinessendofitandinvestalongwithyou。You’dputinyourtalentandambitionandhardwork，andI’dputinthemoneyand——well，nobody’sgoodwishesaretobescorned，notevenmine。Then，whenthethingpannedoutbig，wecouldsharetogether。Yourdoctorfriendhasn’tcaredhalfsomuchaboutyourfutureasIhave。\"
\"He’scaredagooddeal。Hedoesn’tknowasmuchaboutsuchthingsasyoudo。Ofcourseyou’vebeenagreatdealmorehelptomethananyoneelseeverhas，\"Theasaidquietly。Theblackclockonthemantelbegantostrike。Shelistenedtothefivestrokesandthensaid，\"I’dhavelikedyourhelpingmeeightmonthsago。Butnow，you’dsimplybekeepingme。\"
\"Youweren’treadyforiteightmonthsago。\"Fredleanedbackatlastinhischair。\"Yousimplyweren’treadyforit。Youweretootired。Youweretootimid。Yourwholetonewastoolow。Youcouldn’trisefromachairlikethat，\"——shehadstartedupapprehensivelyandgonetowardthewindow。——\"Youwerefumblingandawkward。
Sincethenyou’vecomeintoyourpersonality。Youwerealwayslockinghornswithitbefore。Youwereasullenlittledrudgeeightmonthsago，afraidofbeingcaughtateitherlookingormovinglikeyourself。Nobodycouldtellanythingaboutyou。Avoiceisnotaninstrumentthat’sfoundready—made。Avoiceispersonality。Itcanbeasbigasacircusandascommonasdirt。——There’sgoodmoneyinthatkind，too，butIdon’thappentobeinterestedinthem。——Nobodycouldtellmuchaboutwhatyoumightbeabletodo，lastwinter。Idivinedmorethananybodyelse。\"
\"Yes，Iknowyoudid。\"Theawalkedovertotheold—
fashionedmantelandheldherhandsdowntotheglowofthefire。\"Iowesomuchtoyou，andthat’swhatmakesthingshard。That’swhyIhavetogetawayfromyoualtogether。Idependonyouforsomanythings。Oh，Ididevenlastwinter，inChicago！\"Shekneltdownbythegrateandheldherhandsclosertothecoals。\"Andonethingleadstoanother。\"
Ottenburgwatchedherasshebenttowardthefire。Hisglancebrightenedalittle。\"Anyhow，youcouldn’tlookasyoudonow，beforeyouknewme。YouWEREclumsy。Andwhateveryoudonow，youdosplendidly。Andyoucan’tcryenoughtospoilyourfaceformorethantenminutes。
Itcomesrightback，inspiteofyou。It’sonlysinceyou’veknownmethatyou’veletyourselfbebeautiful。\"
Withoutrisingsheturnedherfaceaway。Fredwentonimpetuously。\"Oh，youcanturnitawayfromme，Thea；
youcantakeitawayfromme！Allthesame——\"hisspurtdiedandhefellback。\"Howcanyouturnonmeso，afterall！\"hesighed。
\"Ihaven’t。Butwhenyouarrangedwithyourselftotakemeinlikethat，youcouldn’thavebeenthinkingverykindlyofme。Ican’tunderstandhowyoucarrieditthrough，whenIwassoeasy，andallthecircumstancesweresoeasy。\"
Hercrouchingpositionbythefirebecamethreatening。
Fredgotup，andTheaalsorose。
\"No，\"hesaid，\"Ican’tmakeyouseethatnow。Sometimelater，perhaps，youwillunderstandbetter。Foronething，Ihonestlycouldnotimaginethatwords，names，meantsomuchtoyou。\"Fredwastalkingwiththedes—
perationofamanwhohasputhimselfinthewrongandwhoyetfeelsthattherewasanideaoftruthinhisconduct。
\"Supposethatyouhadmarriedyourbrakemanandlivedwithhimyearafteryear，caringforhimevenlessthanyoudoforyourdoctor，orforHarsanyi。Isupposeyouwould
havefeltquiteallrightaboutit，becausethatrelationhasanameingoodstanding。Tome，thatseems——sickening！\"
HetookarapidturnabouttheroomandthenasThearemainedstanding，herolledoneoftheelephantinechairsuptothehearthforher。
\"Sitdownandlistentomeforamoment，Thea。\"Hebeganpacingfromthehearthrugtothewindowandbackagain，whileshesatdowncompliantly。\"Don’tyouknowmostofthepeopleintheworldarenotindividualsatall？
Theyneverhaveanindividualideaorexperience。Alotofgirlsgotoboarding—schooltogether，comeoutthesameseason，danceatthesameparties，aremarriedoffingroups，havetheirbabiesataboutthesametime，sendtheirchildrentoschooltogether，andsothehumancroprenewsitself。Suchwomenknowasmuchabouttherealityoftheformstheygothroughastheyknowaboutthewarstheylearnthedatesof。Theygettheirmostper—
sonalexperiencesoutofnovelsandplays。Everythingissecond—handwiththem。Why，youCOULDN’Tlivelikethat。\"
Theasatlookingtowardthemantel，hereyeshalfclosed，herchinlevel，herheadsetasifshewereenduringsome—
thing。Herhands，verywhite，laypassiveonherdarkgown。FromthewindowcornerFredlookedatthemandather。Heshookhisheadandflashedanangry，tormentedlookoutintothebluetwilightovertheSquare，throughwhichmuffledcriesandcallsandtheclangofcarbellscameupfromthestreet。Heturnedagainandbegantopacethefloor，hishandsinhispockets。
\"Saywhatyouwill，TheaKronborg，youarenotthatsortofperson。Youwillneversitalonewithapacifierandanovel。Youwon’tsubsistonwhattheoldladieshaveputintothebottleforyou。Youwillalwaysbreakthroughintotherealities。ThatwasthefirstthingHarsanyifoundoutaboutyou；thatyoucouldn’tbekeptontheoutside。
Ifyou’dlivedinMoonstoneallyourlifeandgotonwiththediscreetbrakeman，you’dhavehadjustthesame
nature。Yourchildrenwouldhavebeentherealitiesthen，probably。Ifthey’dbeencommonplace，you’dhavekilledthemwithdriving。You’dhavemanagedsomewaytolivetwentytimesasmuchasthepeoplearoundyou。\"
Fredpaused。Hesoughtalongtheshadowyceilingandheavymouldingsforwords。Whenhebeganagain，hisvoicewaslower，andatfirsthespokewithlessconviction，thoughagainitgrewonhim。\"NowIknewallthis——oh，knewitbetterthanIcanevermakeyouunderstand！
You’vebeenrunningahandicap。Youhadnotimetolose。
Iwantedyoutohavewhatyouneedandtogetonfast——
getthroughwithme，ifneedbe；Icountedonthat。You’venotimetositroundandanalyzeyourconductoryourfeelings。Otherwomengivetheirwholelivestoit。They’venothingelsetodo。Helpingamantogethisdivorceisacareerforthem；justthesortofintellectualexercisetheylike。\"
Freddivedfiercelyintohispocketsasifhewouldripthemoutandscattertheircontentstothewinds。Stop—
pingbeforeher，hetookadeepbreathandwentonagain，thistimeslowly。\"Allthatsortofthingisforeigntoyou。You’dbenowhereatit。Youhaven’tthatkindofmind。Thegrammaticalnicetiesofconductaredarktoyou。You’resimple——andpoetic。\"Fred’svoiceseemedtobewanderingaboutinthethickeningdusk。\"Youwon’tplaymuch。Youwon’t，perhaps，lovemanytimes。\"Hepaused。\"Andyoudidloveme，youknow。Yourrailroadfriendwouldhaveunderstoodme。ICOULDhavethrownyouback。Thereversewasthere，——itstaredmeintheface，——
butIcouldn’tpullit。Iletyoudriveahead。\"Hethrewouthishands。WhatTheanoticed，oddlyenough，wastheflashofthefirelightonhiscufflink。Heturnedagain。
\"Andyou’llalwaysdriveahead，\"hemuttered。\"It’syourway。\"
Therewasalongsilence。Fredhaddroppedintoachair。
Heseemed，aftersuchanexplosion，nottohaveaword
leftinhim。Theaputherhandtothebackofherneckandpressedit，asifthemusclestherewereaching。
\"Well，\"shesaidatlast，\"IatleastoverlookmoreinyouthanIdoinmyself。Iamalwaysexcusingyoutomyself。
Idon’tdomuchelse。\"
\"Thenwhy，inHeaven’sname，won’tyouletmebeyourfriend？Youmakeascoundrelofme，borrowingmoneyfromanothermantogetoutofmyclutches。\"
\"IfIborrowfromhim，it’stostudy。AnythingItookfromyouwouldbedifferent。AsIsaidbefore，you’dbekeepingme。\"
\"Keeping！Ilikeyourlanguage。It’spureMoonstone，Thea，——likeyourpointofview。Iwonderhowlongyou’llbeaMethodist。\"Heturnedawaybitterly。
\"Well，I’veneversaidIwasn’tMoonstone，haveI？I
am，andthat’swhyIwantDr。Archie。Ican’tseeanythingsofunnyaboutMoonstone，youknow。\"Shepushedherchairbackalittlefromthehearthandclaspedherhandsoverherknee，stilllookingthoughtfullyintotheredcoals。
\"Wealwayscomebacktothesamething，Fred。Thename，asyoucallit，makesadifferencetomehowIfeelaboutmyself。Youwouldhaveactedverydifferentlywithagirlofyourownkind，andthat’swhyIcan’ttakeanythingfromyounow。You’vemadeeverythingimpossible。Beingmarriedisonethingandnotbeingmarriedistheotherthing，andthat’sallthereistoit。Ican’tseehowyoureasonedwithyourself，ifyoutookthetroubletoreason。
YousayIwastoomuchalone，andyetwhatyoudidwastocutmeoffmorethanIeverhadbeen。NowI’mgoingtotrytomakegoodtomyfriendsoutthere。That’sallthereisleftforme。\"
\"Makegoodtoyourfriends！\"Fredburstout。\"WhatoneofthemcaresasIcare，orbelievesasIbelieve？I’vetoldyouI’llneveraskagraciouswordfromyouuntilI
canaskitwithallthechurchesinChristendomatmyback。\"
Thealookedup，andwhenshesawFred’sface，shethoughtsadlythathe，too，lookedasifthingswerespoiledforhim。\"Ifyouknowmeaswellasyousayyoudo，Fred，\"
shesaidslowly，\"thenyouarenotbeinghonestwithyour—
self。YouknowthatIcan’tdothingshalfway。Ifyoukeptmeatall——you’dkeepme。\"Shedroppedherheadwearilyonherhandandsatwithherforeheadrestingonherfingers。
Fredleanedoverherandsaidjustabovehisbreath，\"Then，whenIgetthatdivorce，you’lltakeitupwithmeagain？You’llatleastletmeknow，warnme，beforethereisaseriousquestionofanybodyelse？\"
Withoutliftingherhead，Theaansweredhim。\"Oh，I
don’tthinktherewilleverbeaquestionofanybodyelse。
NotifIcanhelpit。IsupposeI’vegivenyoueveryreasontothinktherewillbe，——atonce，onshipboard，anytime。\"
Ottenburgdrewhimselfuplikeashot。\"Stopit，Thea！\"
hesaidsharply。\"That’sonethingyou’veneverdone。
That’slikeanycommonwoman。\"Hesawhershouldersliftalittleandgrowcalm。Thenhewenttotheothersideoftheroomandtookuphishatandglovesfromthesofa。
Hecamebackcheerfully。\"Ididn’tdropintobullyyouthisafternoon。Icametocoaxyoutogooutforteawithmesomewhere。\"Hewaited，butshedidnotlookuporliftherhead，stillsunkonherhand。
Herhandkerchiefhadfallen。Fredpickeditupandputitonherknee，pressingherfingersoverit。\"Good—night，dearandwonderful，\"hewhispered，——\"wonderfulanddear！
HowcanyouevergetawayfrommewhenIwillalwaysfollowyou，througheverywall，througheverydoor，wher—
everyougo。\"Helookeddownatherbenthead，andthecurveofherneckthatwassosad。Hestooped，andwithhislipsjusttouchedherhairwherethefirelightmadeitruddiest。\"Ididn’tknowIhaditinme，Thea。Ithoughtitwasallafairytale。Idon’tknowmyselfanymore。\"Heclosedhiseyesandbreatheddeeply。\"Thesalt’sallgone
outofyourhair。It’sfullofsunandwindagain。Ibelieveithasmemories。\"Againsheheardhimtakeadeepbreath。
\"Icoulddowithoutyouforalifetime，ifthatwouldgiveyoutoyourself。Awomanlikeyoudoesn’tfindherself，alone。\"
Shethrustherfreehanduptohim。Hekisseditsoftly，asifshewereasleepandhewereafraidofwakingher。
Fromthedoorheturnedbackirrelevantly。\"Astoyouroldfriend，Thea，ifhe’stobehereonFriday，why，\"——hesnatchedouthiswatchandhelditdowntocatchthelightfromthegrate，——\"he’sonthetrainnow！Thatoughttocheeryou。Good—night。\"Sheheardthedoorclose。
III
ONFridayafternoonTheaKronborgwaswalkingex—
citedlyupanddownhersitting—room，whichatthathourwasfloodedbythin，clearsunshine。Bothwindowswereopen，andthefireinthegratewaslow，forthedaywasoneofthosefalsespringsthatsometimesblowintoNewYorkfromtheseainthemiddleofwinter，soft，warm，withapersuasivesaltymoistureintheairandarelaxingthawunderfoot。Theawasflushedandanimated，andsheseemedasrestlessasthesootysparrowsthatchirpedandcheepeddistractinglyaboutthewindows。Shekeptlookingattheblackclock，andthendownintotheSquare。Theroomwasfullofflowers，andshestoppednowandthentoarrangethemortomovethemintothesunlight。Afterthebellboycametoannounceavisitor，shetooksomeRomanhyacinthsfromaglassandstucktheminthefrontofherdark—bluedress。
WhenatlastFredOttenburgappearedinthedoorway，shemethimwithanexclamationofpleasure。\"Iamgladyou’vecome，Fred。Iwasafraidyoumightnotgetmynote，andIwantedtoseeyoubeforeyouseeDr。Archie。
He’ssonice！\"Shebroughtherhandstogethertoem—
phasizeherstatement。
\"Ishe？I’mglad。YouseeI’mquiteoutofbreath。
Ididn’twaitfortheelevator，butranupstairs。Iwassopleasedatbeingsentfor。\"Hedroppedhishatandover—
coat。\"Yes，Ishouldsayheisnice！Idon’tseemtorecognizeallofthese，\"wavinghishandkerchiefaboutattheflowers。
\"Yes，hebroughtthemhimself，inabigbox。Hebroughtlotswithhimbesidesflowers。Oh，lotsofthings！TheoldMoonstonefeeling，\"——Theamovedherhandbackand
forthintheair，flutteringherfingers，——\"thefeelingofstartingout，earlyinthemorning，totakemylesson。\"
\"Andyou’vehadeverythingoutwithhim？\"
\"No，Ihaven’t。\"
\"Haven’t？\"Helookedupinconsternation。
\"No，Ihaven’t！\"Theaspokeexcitedly，movingaboutoverthesunnypatchesonthegrimycarpet。\"I’veliedtohim，justasyousaidIhadalwaysliedtohim，andthat’swhyI’msohappy。I’velethimthinkwhathelikestothink。Oh，Icouldn’tdoanythingelse，Fred，\"——
sheshookherheademphatically。\"Ifyou’dseenhimwhenhecamein，sopleasedandexcited！Youseethisisagreatadventureforhim。FromthemomentIbegantotalktohim，heentreatedmenottosaytoomuch，nottospoilhisnotionofme。Notinsomanywords，ofcourse。
Butifyou’dseenhiseyes，hisface，hiskindhands！Oh，no！Icouldn’t。\"Shetookadeepbreath，asifwitharenewedsenseofhernarrowescape。
\"Then，whatdidyoutellhim？\"Freddemanded。
Theasatdownontheedgeofthesofaandbeganshuttingandopeningherhandsnervously。\"Well，Itoldhimenough，andnottoomuch。Itoldhimallabouthowgoodyouweretomelastwinter，gettingmeengagementsandthings，andhowyouhadhelpedmewithmyworkmorethananybody。ThenItoldhimabouthowyousentmedowntotheranchwhenIhadnomoneyoranything。\"
Shepausedandwrinkledherforehead。\"AndItoldhimthatIwantedtomarryyouandranawaytoMexicowithyou，andthatIwasawfullyhappyuntilyoutoldmethatyoucouldn’tmarrymebecause——well，Itoldhimwhy。\"
Theadroppedhereyesandmovedthetoeofhershoeaboutrestlesslyonthecarpet。
\"Andhetookitfromyou，likethat？\"Fredasked，almostwithawe。
\"Yes，justlikethat，andaskednoquestions。Hewashurt；hehadsomewretchedmoments。Icouldseehim
squirmingandsquirmingandtryingtogetpastit。Hekeptshuttinghiseyesandrubbinghisforehead。ButwhenItoldhimthatIabsolutelyknewyouwantedtomarryme，thatyouwouldwheneveryoucould，thatseemedtohelphimagooddeal。\"
\"Andthatsatisfiedhim？\"Fredaskedwonderingly。
HecouldnotquiteimaginewhatkindofpersonDr。Archiemightbe。
\"Hetookmebytheshouldersonceandasked，oh，insuchafrightenedway，`Thea，washeGOODtoyou，thisyoungman？’WhenItoldhimyouwere，helookedatmeagain：`Andyoucareforhimagreatdeal，youbelieveinhim？’Thenheseemedsatisfied。\"Theapaused。\"Yousee，he’sjusttremendouslygood，andtremendouslyafraidofthings——ofsomethings。OtherwisehewouldhavegotridofMrs。Archie。\"Shelookedupsuddenly：\"Youwereright，though；onecan’ttellpeopleaboutthingstheydon’tknowalready。\"
Fredstoodinthewindow，hisbacktothesunlight，fingeringthejonquils。\"Yes，youcan，mydear。Butyoumusttellitinsuchawaythattheydon’tknowyou’retellingit，andthattheydon’tknowthey’rehear—
ingit。\"
Theasmiledpasthim，outintotheair。\"Isee。It’sasecret。Likethesoundintheshell。\"
\"What’sthat？\"Fredwaswatchingherandthinkinghowmovingthatfarawayexpression，inher，happenedtobe。\"Whatdidyousay？\"
Shecameback。\"Oh，somethingoldandMoonstony！
Ihavealmostforgottenitmyself。ButIfeelbetterthanI
thoughtIevercouldagain。Ican’twaittobeoff。Oh，Fred，\"shesprangup，\"Iwanttogetatit！\"
Asshebrokeoutwiththis，shethrewupherheadandliftedherselfalittleonhertoes。Fredcoloredandlookedatherfearfully，hesitatingly。Hereyes，whichlookedoutthroughthewindow，werebright——theyhadnomemories。
No，shedidnotremember。Thatmomentaryelevationhadnoassociationsforher。Itwasunconscious。
Helookedherupanddownandlaughedandshookhishead。\"YouarejustallIwantyoutobe——andthatis，——
notforme！Don’tworry，you’llgetatit。Youareatit。
MyGod！haveyouever，foronemoment，beenatanythingelse？\"
Theadidnotanswerhim，andclearlyshehadnotheardhim。Shewaswatchingsomethingoutinthethinlightofthefalsespringanditstreacherouslysoftair。
Fredwaitedamoment。\"Areyougoingtodinewithyourfriendto—night？\"
\"Yes。HehasneverbeeninNewYorkbefore。Hewantstogoabout。WhereshallItellhimtogo？\"
\"Wouldn’titbeabetterplan，sinceyouwishmetomeethim，foryoubothtodinewithme？Itwouldseemonlynaturalandfriendly。You’llhavetoliveupalittletohisnotionofus。\"Theaseemedtoconsiderthesuggestionfavorably。\"Ifyouwishhimtobeeasyinhismind，\"
Fredwenton，\"thatwouldhelp。Ithink，myself，thatwearerathernicetogether。Putononeofthenewdressesyougotdownthere，andlethimseehowlovelyyoucanbe。Youowehimsomepleasure，afterallthetroublehehastaken。\"
Thealaughed，andseemedtofindtheideaexcitingandpleasant。\"Oh，verywell！I’lldomybest。Onlydon’twearadresscoat，please。Hehasn’tone，andhe’snervousaboutit。\"
Fredlookedathiswatch。\"Yourmonumentupthereisfast。I’llbeherewithacabateight。I’manxioustomeethim。You’vegivenmethestrangestideaofhiscallowinnocenceandagedindifference。\"
Sheshookherhead。\"No，he’snoneofthat。He’sverygood，andhewon’tadmitthings。Ilovehimforit。Now，asIlookbackonit，IseethatI’vealways，evenwhenIwaslittle，shieldedhim。\"
Asshelaughed，Fredcaughtthebrightsparkinhereyethatheknewsowell，andhelditforahappyin—
stant。Thenheblewherakisswithhisfinger—tipsandfled。