question:

"How long may the dying man last? Surely--surely--" Her voice faltered,
and broke down with a sob.

"He _can_ not last more than a very few days. He _may_ not last
more than a few hours," said the abbess, in a low tone.

"Surely--surely, then," resumed Salome, in a broken voice, "he will make
a confession before he dies. He will vindicate his brother, and so save
his own soul."

"I think that he will do so, Sister Salome. Calm yourself. He has caused
a telegram to be sent to the Duke of Hereward, calling him here."

Salome started and trembled violently. She could scarcely gasp forth the
words of her broken exclamation:

"The Duke of Hereward! Called! Here!"

"Yes, my daughter. So you perceive that your proposed journey to England
is forestalled."

"My husband coming here! Oh! how soon will he come? He cannot be here in
less than twenty-four hours, can he?" eagerly demanded Salome.

"He may be here in less than six hours. The Duke of Hereward does not
have to come from London; he is not there, but in Paris; so you perceive,
also, that if you had gone to England, as you proposed to do, you would
have missed seeing him there," added the lady, smiling.

"My husband in Paris--so near. My husband to be here this evening--so
soon. Oh, this is too much, too much happiness!" exclaimed the young
wife, bursting into tears of joy.

"Then you have no dread of meeting him?" suggested the elder lady.

"'Dread of meeting him?' Dread of meeting my own dear husband? Ah, no,
no, no! No dread, but an infinite longing to meet him. Oh! I know and
feel how I have wronged him. How deeply and bitterly I have wronged him.
But I know, also, how utterly he will pardon me. Yes, I know that, as
surely as I know that my Heavenly Lord pardons us all of our repented
sins!" fervently exclaimed Salome.

"Heaven grant that you may be happy, my child'" said the lady, earnestly.

At that moment the door opened, and an aged nun, one of the attendants in
the Old Men's Home, entered the room.

"Well, Mere Pauline, what is it?" calmly inquired the abbess.

"Holy mother, I have come from Monsieur le Docteur to say that the
messenger has come back from L'Ange, and brought an answer to the
telegram. Monsieur le Duc d' Hereward will be here by the midday
express from Paris, which reaches L'Ange at five o'clock this afternoon,"
answered Mere Pauline.

"Thanks for your news. Sit down and breathe after climbing all these
stairs. And n