ch and shall have no
other opportunity to see him."

Kate's smile was roses and cream touched with frosty sunshine, and to
onlookers nothing could have been sweeter. But her eyes were coldly cruel
as sharpened steel, and they said to her sister as plainly as words could
have spoken: "Do you obey my wish, my lady, or I will freeze the heart out
of you."

Marcia turned white and sick. She felt as if her lips had suddenly
stiffened and refused to obey her when they ought to have smiled. What
would all these people think of her, and how was she behaving? For David's
sake she ought to do something, say something, look something, but
what--what should she do?

While she was thinking this, with the freezing in her heart creeping up
into her throat, the great tears beating at the portals of her eyes, and
time standing suddenly still waiting for her leaden tongue to speak, David
answered:

All gracefully 'twas done, with not so much as a second's
hesitation,--though it had seemed so long to Marcia,--nor the shadow of a
sign that he was angry:

"Mrs. Leavenworth," he said in his masterful voice, "I am sure my wife
would not wish to seem ungracious, or unwilling to comply with your
request, but as it happens it is impossible. We are not returning home for
several days. My wife has some shopping to do in Albany, and in fact we
are expecting to take a little trip. A sort of second honeymoon, you
know,"--he added, smiling toward Mrs. Heath and Miranda; "it is the first
time I have had leisure to plan for it since we were married. I am sorry I
have to hurry away, but I am sure that my friend Squire Heath can give as
much help in a business way as I could, and furthermore, Squire Schuyler
is now in New York for a few days as I learned in a letter from him which
arrived last evening. I am sure he can give you more and better advice
than any I could give. I wish you good morning. Good morning, Mrs. Heath.
Good morning, Miss Miranda!"

Lifting his hat David drove away from them and straight over to the little
wayside hostelry where he was to finish his article to send by the
messenger who was even then ready mounted for the purpose.

"My! Don't he think a lot of her though!" said Miranda, rolling the words
as a sweet morsel under her tongue. "It must be nice to have a man so fond
of you." This was one of the occasions when Miranda wished she had eyes in
the back of her head. She was sharp and she had seen a thing or two, also
she