of gloomy
eyes to her friend's face. "I can never touch his money, nor the
things he buys. I want nothing from him, either for Elia or myself.
I'm married to him and that I can't undo. Would to God I could! But I
can never take anything from the man I do not love, and my love for
Will is dead--dead. No, Annie, I must go on working in my own way, and
I only hope and pray my husband will keep away. Maybe he will. Maybe
when he's made a big pile out of his--claim he will go away
altogether, and leave me in peace with Elia. I'm hoping for
it--praying for it. Oh, my dear, my dear, what a mistake I've made!
You don't know. You can't guess."

There was a silence for some moments. Annie was thinking hard.
Suddenly she put a sharp question.

"Tell me, Eve. This fear you was saying. How can you be frightened?
What of?"

There was no mistaking the effect of her words. Eve's brown eyes
suddenly dilated. She looked like a hunted woman. And Annie shrank at
the sight of it.

"I don't know," she said with a shiver. "I--I can't describe it.
It's to do with Will. It's to do with"--she glanced about her
fearfully--"his money, his gold find. Don't question me, because I
don't know why I'm afraid. I think I first got afraid through Elia.
He's a queer lad--you don't know how queer he is at times. Well"--she
swallowed as though with a dry throat--"well, from the first,
when--when Will found gold Elia laughed. And--and every time we
speak about it he laughs, and will say nothing. Oh, I wish I knew."

"Knew what?"

Annie's question came with a curious abruptness. Eve stared. And when
she spoke it was almost to herself.

"I don't know what I want to know. Only I--I wish I knew."

Annie suddenly came over to her friend's side. She took her hands in
hers and squeezed them sympathetically.

"Eve, I don't guess I've got anything to say that can help you. But
whenever you want to talk things that'll relieve you, why, you can
just talk all you like to me. But don't you talk of these things to
any other folk. Sure, sure, girl, don't you do it. You can just trust
me, 'cause I've got so bad a memory. Other folks hasn't. I'll be goin'
now to get my man's dinner. Good-bye."

She bent over and kissed the girl's thin cheek with a hearty smack.
But, as she left the house, there was a grave light such as was
rarely, if ever, seen in her merry eyes.

CHAPTER XIX

BRANDED

There is no calm so peaceful, no peace so idyllic as that whic