not seem to meet the case. A man
may be genuinely in love with a woman and yet not be stricken, as had
the doctor, by her sudden death. Dimly, Coombe felt that there must be a
cause behind the cause. Miss Sinclair, the eldest, even went so far as
to quote Shakespeare to the effect that "men have died and the worms
have eaten them, but not for love." True, the doctor was not dead but
his illness was proving a very long and stubborn one. In its early
stages he had been taken away to Toronto for special treatment and had
been quite unable to see any one, even the minister, before he left.
Mrs. Sykes alone, with the exception of the trained nurses, had laid
eyes on him since his sudden collapse on the day of the wedding. And
Mrs. Sykes, miraculously, had nothing to say.

It was rumoured, however, that his brain was affected, that he was
paralysed, that he was deaf and blind, that he was dying of slow
decline. Somehow the town felt that Mary Coombe, living or dead, did not
loom large enough as a cause of such disintegration.

Esther's actions, too, were part of the puzzle. It had been confidently
supposed that she would go away at once for a rest and change. Every one
knew that the Hollises had offered to take her with them on a long trip
to the Pacific Coast. But Esther had declined to go. She declined to go
anywhere. Worn out as she was with strain and grief, she persisted in
disregarding the advice of everybody. ("So headstrong in a young girl!
But Doctor Coombe, her father, was always like that.") Apparently she
intended to go on exactly as if nothing had happened and to all
arguments said nothing save, "I think it will be best," or, "I am not
fit for strange scenes just now," or something equally futile. Coombe
was quite annoyed with Esther--so stubborn!

Only to Miss Annabel did the girl attempt to justify her attitude when
that kind soul had exhausted persuasion and was inclined to feel both
worried and hurt.

"Don't you see," she explained haltingly, "I can't go away. I don't want
to. I can't make the effort. Here every one understands and will make
allowances. I want to be quiet, to rest, to think. I want to get back to
where I was before--if I can."

"Before what, my dear?"

"Before--everything! I can't explain. But I know it is the only way I
shall ever be content. I want to take my school again and to go on
working and looking after Jane and Aunt Amy. Although," with a little
smile, "it is really Auntie wh