“Alas, I fear there is nothing to be done!”
Her lips framed the word:
“Dead!”
Then she swayed and he had to uphold her.
“Come, come!” said he soothingly, yet shuddering all over his comfortable flesh to feel what skeleton attenuation lay between his hands. “My dear child, do not give way to this. There is nothing, there can be really nothing alarming about the passing away of one who has attained the allotted span. Poor Simon!”
She reared herself with extraordinary energy to fix eyes full of fierce questioning upon him. He went on:
“Thank God, I can quite reassure you about David—”
“David!”
She echoed the name with what was almost a shriek; then caught the end of her hanging sleeve and thrust it to her mouth, as if to keep any further sound from escaping.
“Did you not know?” asked the rector. “We were in much anxiety, but whatever noxious drug was——” he stopped unwilling to raise the question.