ddenly cried, taking his hand in both of
hers, and looking up to him with her piteous, tear-dimmed eyes; "we will
always be together! What is it that you say?--what is it that you mean?
Not that you are going away without me? I have courage for anything but
that. It does not matter what comes, only that I must go with you--we
two together!"

"Hush, hush, Violet," said he soothingly, for he saw that the girl was
really beside herself with grief and apprehension. "Come, this is not
like the brave Violet of old. I thought there was nothing in all the
world you were afraid to face. Look up, now."

She released his hand, and a strange expression came over her face. That
wild outburst had been an involuntary confession; now a great fear and
shame filled her heart that she should have been betrayed into it, and
in a despairing, pathetic fashion she tried to explain away her words.

"We shall be together, shall we not?" she said, with an affected
cheerfulness, though she was still crying gently. "It does not matter
what part of the Highlands you go to--I will go with you. I must write
and explain to Mrs. Dowse. It would be a pity that we should separate so
soon, after that long time, would it not? And then the brisk air of the
hills, and of the yachting, will be better for you than the hot summer
here, won't it? And I am sure you will get very well there; that is just
the place for you to get strong; and when the time for the shooting
comes, we shall all go out, as we used to do, to see you missing every
bird that gets up."

She tried to smile, but did not succeed very well.

"And really it does not matter to me so very much what part we go to,
for, as you say, one ought to conquer these feelings, and if you prefer
Castle Bandbox, I will go there too--that is, I shall be very proud to
go if I am not in the way. And you know I am the only one who can make
cartridges for you."

"I don't think I shall trouble the cartridges very much," said he, glad
to think she was becoming more cheerful.

"Indeed," she continued, "I don't know what would have become of your
gun if I had not looked after it, for you only half cleaned it, and old
Peter would not touch it, and the way the sea air rusted the barrels was
quite remarkable. Will you have No. 3 or No. 4 shot this year for the
sea birds?"

"Well," he answered gravely, "you see we shall have no yacht this year,
and probably no chances of wild duck at all; and it would scarcely be