e young man, slowly. And he turned his
burning eyes upon her till she shrank, but this time neither from fear
nor loathing; it was a new sensation which made itself disagreeably
felt. Was she indeed as innocent as she said? Was there not a faint
horrible suspicion of bluster in her fury of contempt and repudiation?
She was silent, struggling with herself.

"You have broken my heart, I think," said Tommy, in the same slow, dull
tone. "You have done what I was told you would do. You have played with
me, as others of your kind have played with others of mine. God forgive
you for your cruelty, but I--I am awake now,----" and again he muttered
to himself like a man in a dream.

"Mr. Andrews, can you say?--stop, I suppose you can. Wait a moment; let
me speak. I was lonely, unhappy, absorbed in myself and the empty
weariness of my life when--when I met you. I read in your face that
you--well, say it was my fault, say it was," suddenly impetuous--"at
most it was but a passing folly, and it was over almost before it had
begun. If it is any satisfaction to you now, I will say that I
am--sorry. I can do no more."

"No, you can do no more. It is much for a great lady to go so far. It is
the usual thing, I suppose;--" and again his mentor's words, "She was
sorry, _so_ sorry," echoed in the speaker's ears--"and the--the episode
is at an end. Again I say God forgive you, Mrs. Stubbs, for I never
can."

He was gone, and she rushed homewards, stumbling over every pebble in
her path.

CHAPTER XVI.

TEMPTATION.

"Is anything the matter with Leo?" said Maud, the next day. "She is in
such an odd mood; and she has scarcely left her room since morning."

"She feels the going away, I think," replied Sybil, not ill-pleased to
say it, for she was smarting beneath a fresh instance of her other
sister's callousness. "We had a talk yesterday, and I saw she was taking
it dreadfully to heart."

"Rather absurd of Leo. She was ready enough to go once; and she can't be
as much attached to the place as we are, who have never been away from
it;" and Maud looked aggrieved, as people do when others are accredited
with finer feelings than they themselves can boast of. "Paul is low
to-day, too, but I believe it is lumbago. I only hope it is, and not
another attack of fever coming on."

"That would be very inconvenient, certainly," rejoined Sybil, gravely.
It struck her that there was not much sympathy for the sufferer in
either case. "Wh