.

Miss Arabella was lying just where Rod had left her when John Markham
and the boy entered. She gave a little squeak of joy when the stranger
stepped to her side.

"I knew you would come back," she murmured. "I was certain that you
would not forsake me."

"Not until I had found the horse, madam," was the reply. "I regret
very much that the wagon is broken, but I shall make good your loss."

"Don't mention such a thing," and the invalid feebly waved her thin
hands. "Such material matters don't count for anything to a heart
over-flowing with gratitude."

"Yes, you were most fortunate to escape as you did, madam. You might
have been seriously injured, nay, you might have been killed, and so I
can understand how grateful you must feel."

"Oh, I don't mean that," and Miss Arabella raised her soulful eyes to
the man's face. "I am so thankful that you have come back."

"You didn't imagine that I would run away with your horse, did you,
madam? She is certainly a fine beast, and it is lucky that she did not
receive any serious damage. I am much pleased that I have been able to
deliver her to you with so few scratches upon her. A little treatment
will make her all right. You will find Bickmore's Gall Cure very good."

"It's not that, not that, I assure you," and again Miss Arabella
flapped her hands in agony of soul. "What does a horse amount to when
the heart is affected?"

"Oh, is that what's the matter?" and Mr. Markham assumed an expression
of great solicitude. "It was the fall, no doubt, which did it. Have
you had trouble there before?"

"It wasn't the fall that caused it," and Miss Arabella covered her face
with her hand. "It goes deeper than that."

"Dear me, madam, you must certainly see the doctor. It is very
serious, and you must not delay any longer. I believe the doctor lives
down the road. Shall I call on him on my way home, and tell him to
come at once?"

Before Miss Arabella could reply, a raucous honk outside arrested their
attention.

"It's merely the car," Mr. Markham explained. "I must be going now."

"What, so soon? Must you leave me again?" and the invalid raised her
eyes appealingly to the man's face.

"Yes, I must be off. My wife will be wondering what----"

"Your wife!" Miss Arabella shrieked, sitting bolt upright. "Do you
tell me that you have a wife!"

"Certainly. She is waiting for me with some friends down the road.
Several of us men took a spin this aftern