se he were killed! A sudden choking sensation in her
throat, a quickened beating of her heart, told her that it would be a
greater misfortune than any that had yet befallen her. If she had never
fully realized it before, Grace knew now that this man had come to be
part of her own life.

Night fell, with its profound silence and its mysterious sounds. Nature
slept. The chirping of crickets, the croaking of frogs, the mournful
sighing of the wind in the trees, the sullen splash of the waves on the
sandy beach, were the only audible sounds. It was the first time that
Grace had been left so long alone since they set foot on the island. In
the daytime, with the sun shining, the birds singing and everything
plainly visible for miles around, she did not care. But the darkness,
the solemn silence, the strange inexplicable noises she heard every now
and again in the wood--all this frightened her. Everything around her
assumed strange, unfamiliar shapes. At one time she thought she saw some
object with gleaming eyes approaching the cabin. Her flesh began to
creep. Terrified, she quickly retreated inside the cabin and,
barricading the door with table and chairs, crouched down by the window,
straining her ears to hear some sound of Armitage.

Suppose something had happened to him! Then she would be quite alone,
entirely defenceless. The mere thought of such an eventuality caused the
blood to freeze in her veins. How could she be alone on that desert
island? She would go stark, staring mad. Ah, now she knew what his
companionship had meant to her. If only he would come back, she would
hardly be able to resist the temptation to throw her arms round his
neck. He was more necessary to her every day. No one can live without
human companionship. She must have some one to talk to. Besides, every
hour it dawned upon her more strongly that she loved this strange,
solitary man. Even at this moment of terror it was love as much as fear
that racked her heart with anxiety and anguish.

Morning was just breaking in the east when all at once he reappeared.

"Where have you been?" she asked tremulously.

She averted her eyes so he should not see that she had been weeping.

"I don't know," he answered curtly.

He seemed worn and tired. His boots were muddy, his clothes had fresh
rents and stains. He looked as if he had been tramping through the
woods all night.

"Will you eat something?" she asked.

"Don't bother," he replied. "I'll get s