But,' objected Agatha, 'we may not live here always. If we leave before your son returns——'
'My son is bound to come back before the end of this year, if he is alive.'
'Then will he wish to come and live here?'
'No. Neither my son nor I will ever live here again, I fancy.'
'Then where will you be when your son returns?'
'I do not know. In my grave, perhaps. I have told you my agents' address.'
So, after a little hesitation and a great deal of wonder, Agatha gave him her promise to act as he wished. Seeing he looked tired and worn, she asked him if he would have any refreshment, but he refused.
'You need not make my visit known throughout the neighbourhood,' he said, standing up and buttoning up his coat; then glancing at her Bible, which lay open on the table by her side, he added rather sarcastically:
'If you want a Bible study, Miss Dane, discover the answer to a proposition made in the Book of Jeremiah. I believe it's in the first verse of the twelfth chapter. You see I know my Bible well.'
'And so do I,' said Agatha, smiling, 'though not so well as I ought. And I can tell you that the same proposition troubled David; but he solved it in the sanctuary.'