and exclaiming:

"Hold on a minute and listen to me first. I have something that belongs
to ye. I found it after ye'd gone out, and ran after ye. I thought ye'd
miss it and come back. I wonder ye didn't. Ye see I was tidyin' up yer
room, and yer brush dropped down behind the bureau; and when I pushed it
out from the wall I found this under the edge of the carpet. Ye better
keep these little things in the drawer." Her hand was in the capacious
pocket of her apron as she spoke, her plump fingers feeling about its
depths. "Oh, here it is," she cried. "I was gettin' nigh scared ter
death fer fear I'd lost it. Here, give me your cuff and I'll put it in
fer ye."

"What is it? A cuff button?" he asked, controlling his disappointment
but biding his time.

"Yes, and a good one."

"I'm sorry, Mistress Kitty, but it cannot be mine," he returned with a
smile. "I have but one pair, and both buttons are in place, as you can
see," and he held out his cuffs.

"Well, then, who can this one belong to? Take a look at it. It's got
arms on one button and two letters mixed up together on the other," and
she dropped it into his hand.

Felix held the sleeve-links to the light, smothered a cry and, with a
quick movement of his hands, steadied himself by the table.

"Where did you get this?" he breathed rather than spoke.

"I just told ye. Down behind the bureau where ye dropped it, along with
your hair-brush."

Felix tightened his fingers, straining the muscles of his arms, striving
with all his might to keep his body from shaking. He had his back to
her, his face toward the lamp, and had thus escaped her scrutiny. "I
haven't lost it," he faltered, prolonging the examination to gain time
and speaking with great deliberation.

"Ye haven't! Oh, I am that disappointed! And ye didn't drop it? Well,
then, who did drop it?" she cried, looking over his shoulder. She had
been thinking all the evening how pleased he would be when she returned
it, and in her chagrin had not noticed the mental storm he was trying to
master.

"And ye're sure ye didn't drop it?" she reiterated.

"Quite sure," he answered slowly, his face still in the shadow, the link
still in his hand.

"Well, that's the strangest thing I ever heard! We don't have nobody--we
ain't never had nobody up in that room with things on 'em like that. The
fellow that John and I fired didn't have no sleeve-buttons."

"Perhaps somebody else may have dropped it," he answered, sinking