d saw, hardly
noticing it this time, that the rose-bush was again violently agitated,
yet with no wind evident elsewhere.

"Where is she?" she cried.

Mrs. Dent laughed with stiff lips as she came up the steps over the
terrace. "Girls will be girls," said she. "She's gone with Addie to
Lincoln. Addie's got an uncle who's conductor on the train, and lives
there, and he got 'em passes, and they're goin' to stay to Addie's Aunt
Margaret's a few days. Mrs. Slocum said Agnes didn't have time to come
over and ask me before the train went, but she took it on herself to
say it would be all right, and--"

"Why hadn't she been over to tell you?" Rebecca was angry, though not
suspicious. She even saw no reason for her anger.

"Oh, she was putting up grapes. She was coming over just as soon as
she got the black off her hands. She heard I had company, and her
hands were a sight. She was holding them over sulphur matches."

"You say she's going to stay a few days?" repeated Rebecca dazedly.

"Yes; till Thursday, Mrs. Slocum said."

"How far is Lincoln from here?"

"About fifty miles. It'll be a real treat to her. Mrs. Slocum's
sister is a real nice woman."

"It is goin' to make it pretty late about my goin' home."

"If you don't feel as if you could wait, I'll get her ready and send
her on just as soon as I can," Mrs. Dent said sweetly.

"I'm going to wait," said Rebecca grimly.

The two women sat down again, and Mrs. Dent took up her embroidery.

"Is there any sewing I can do for her?" Rebecca asked finally in a
desperate way. "If I can get her sewing along some--"

Mrs. Dent arose with alacrity and fetched a mass of white from the
closet. "Here," she said, "if you want to sew the lace on this
nightgown. I was going to put her to it, but she'll be glad enough to
get rid of it. She ought to have this and one more before she goes. I
don't like to send her away without some good underclothing."

Rebecca snatched at the little white garment and sewed feverishly.

That night she wakened from a deep sleep a little after midnight and
lay a minute trying to collect her faculties and explain to herself
what she was listening to. At last she discovered that it was the then
popular strains of "The Maiden's Prayer" floating up through the floor
from the piano in the sitting-room below. She jumped up, threw a shawl
over her nightgown, and hurried downstairs trembling. There was nobody
in the sitting-room; the