d House, and it's not your turn until
to-morrow. The Colonel has graciously signified his approval of our
arrangements."

When my watch commenced the next day Ormond seemed pleased to see me, and
Grace, who was spreading southern flowers in the room, withdrew. Then
Calvert and Colonel Carrington came in with a lawyer, and I raised Ormond
so that he could see them. Outside, and not far below the window, bright
sunlight beat down upon the sparkling inlet, and across it the mountains
rose in a giant wall. Ormond glanced at them and sighed. Then he said with
slow distinctness:

"Put it down in your own fashion. This is the gist of it: I, Geoffrey
Ormond, being now at least perfectly sound in mind, bequeath my gray
horse at Day Spring, all my guns and rifles, with my silver harness and
two pedigree hunters at Carrington, to Ralph Lorimer, in token of
friendship and gratitude for a courageous attempt at my rescue when by
accident I fell from a rock. I especially desire this inserted, Mr.
Solicitor. You quite understand what I am saying, Colonel Carrington?"

There was a significant smile in his eyes as they met mine, and something
rose in my throat threatening to choke me when he added aside: "You will
accept these things as a memento of our last march, I hope? With this
exception, I bequeath my property in stocks and lands of all and every
kind--I do not enumerate, or appoint other executor--to Colonel Carrington
of Carrington Manor, the balance remaining after his death to revert to
his daughter Grace. Set it all out in due form, and give me the paper to
sign."

Remembering what Grace once told me I fancied that an expression of
unutterable relief smoothed out the wrinkles of anxiety on the legatee's
brow, but I may have been mistaken in this. There was a curious look in
Ormond's face, and I understood the depth of his loyalty to Grace. It
struck me with a shock that Ormond, in spite of his apparent carelessness,
realized how far matters had drifted, and hoped to spare her the painful
discovery. Then he lay back struggling for breath, when, after the will
was signed, at a signal from the doctor the others withdrew. Perhaps an
hour passed while I kept watch alone before he spoke again, saying very
faintly:

"It's strange, Lorimer, that circumstances should constitute you my
protector. It's not the usual ending of a very old story. A rich man and a
poor man loved the same woman, and--this is where the strangeness happens