But the darkness of spirit that was upon her, the deadness of heart in prayer! Marian drew herself up, frightened, to learn the cause. Whatever else she might be willing to part with, for Joan’s sake—and in that dire strife it did seem to Marian that she could gladly have given up all she possessed or hoped for in life, to feel Joan once more her own—one thing she could not face, and that was the loss of heavenly peace.
This it was which brought Marian to her knees beside the grave, and to tears of penitence. The battle was won at last.
Leonard Ackroyd had been away from the Hall lately. At once, after the discovery of Joan’s relationship to the Cairns family, he had taken himself off on a round of visits.
How long he might have remained absent is uncertain, but for a wish to see him again expressed by George Rutherford. So soon as an echo of that wish reached Leo, he quitted the house where he was staying, and came homeward with all possible speed, arriving unexpectedly during Joan’s absence, when she was paying her visit to Marian Brooke at Cairns farm.
Dulcibel took Leo straight upstairs to see her husband, and he was very painfully impressed with the great change in George Rutherford’s appearance. Leo was in a mood to be easily rendered indignant, just because he was himself thoroughly unsettled and unhappy in mind. He felt indignant now that he had not been more fully informed as to the state of the invalid.
To Dulcibel herself, Leo said little. But when Joan came back from her unsuccessful expedition, Leo met her in the hall. She looked so sad and weary-hearted, that Leo’s own heart gave a great throb of pitying sympathy. He did not, however, wish her to know that, and his manner was brusque as he asked, after scant greeting—“Why was I not told about my uncle?”
“I don’t know what you mean,” Joan said listlessly. She walked into the drawing-room, and stood there, waiting for his next words. Nobody else was present.
“About his being so much worse. Surely you have seen it, Joan!” as the dark eyes went up to his with a look of terror. “The difference seems to me so very marked. Where are you going?”
“To father. Oh Leo, don’t keep me.”
But Leo was at the door before her, and his warm strong hands grasped her cold shaking ones.