ncerned in these deeds, and
in cold blood, not by appealing to her emotions, must she withdraw that.

"I'm not going to argue about it," he said. "I want you to tell me at
once that I am right, that it was sheer nonsense, to put no other name
to it, when you suggested that I thought that of Hermann."

"Oh, pray put another name to it," she said.

"Very well. It was a wanton falsehood," said Michael, "and you know it."

Truly this hellish nightmare of war and hate which had arisen brought
with it a brood not less terrible. A day ago, an hour ago he would have
merely laughed at the possibility of such a situation between Sylvia and
himself. Yet here it was: they were in the middle of it now.

She looked up at him flashing with indignation, and a retort as stinging
as his rose to her lips. And then quite suddenly, all her anger went
from her, as her, heart told her, in a voice that would not be silenced,
the complete justice of what he had said, and the appeal that Michael
refrained from making was made by her to herself. Remorse held her on
its spikes for her abominable suggestion, and with it came a sense
of utter desolation and misery, of hatred for herself in having thus
quietly and deliberately said what she had said. She could not account
for it, nor excuse herself on the plea that she had spoken in passion,
for she had spoken, as he felt, in cold blood. Hence came the misery in
the knowledge that she must have wounded Michael intolerably.

Her lips so quivered that when she first tried to speak no words would
come. That she was truly ashamed brought no relief, no ease to her
surrender, for she knew that it was her real self who had spoken thus
incredibly. But she could at least disown that part of her.

"I beg your pardon, Michael," she said. "I was atrocious. Will you
forgive me? Because I am so miserable."

He had nothing but love for her, love and its kinsman pity.

"Oh, my dear, fancy you asking that!" he said.

Just for the moment of their reconciliation, it seemed to both that they
came closer to each other than they had ever been before, and the chance
of the need of any such another reconciliation was impossible to the
verge of laughableness, so that before five minutes were past he could
make the smile break through her tears at the absurdity of the moment
that now seemed quite unreal. Yet that which was at the root of their
temporary antagonism was not removed by the reconciliation; at most
they