But for some injustice that she had to repent of, this simple, affectionate letter, coming as it were from the grave, would have aroused nothing but tender grief. It contained no complaint of the man she had married—did not even mention the governess, who now filled her place; and the possibility that she had terribly wronged these two persons dawned steadily upon her.
She looked up at last, and spoke to Hannah Yates; but there was no answer. The old woman was on her road to the railroad station, burdened only with a secret she dared not reveal, and the gold which had been saved with the diamonds.
CHAPTER XV.
THE EARL'S RETURN.
Days passed, and Caroline heard nothing of the new friend she had made; but one day Eliza brought her a letter which had come, inclosed in one from Margaret, who had left town with her mistress so suddenly that she found no time to say farewell.
This was the letter which broke down so many hopes for the unhappy girl:
"My dear, dear friend—
"For that you always will be, so long as I have a pulse in my heart or a purpose in my brain! It does not require an eternity for two young girls like us to become firm friends; but it will take more than that to destroy the faith and love we feel for each other. I know that you will believe every word that I say, though I may be compelled to seem cruel and faithless. I cannot come to see you. They tell me it might offend my father. I cannot ask you to his house, because it is his, and I have no authority in it. But the time will come when I shall have a house of my own, and then no guest shall be so honored. Why do I love you so? Is it that I remember something? Or has any person told me that you and I have slept in each other's arms, and breathed upon the same pillow, with an old woman bending over us—a noble-faced old woman, with gray hair, and a queenly way of carrying the head? Have you any remembrance of a woman like that? Do you remember a hot, red fire, streams of water gushing over it, a ladder, a crowd, and great pipes coiling like a tangle of huge snakes along a street full of people? I do—and this no one has ever told me.
"I want to ask all these things in person. You are from America. I was there once, and after that fire I remember the ocean and a great black ship, which sent banners of smoke over us day after day.
"Then Oakhurst. I was not four years old then, but my life began in America, so far as I know of it.
"I cannot help you now; but if you hate the stage so much, be firm, and madame cannot force you upon it. Besides, I am determined to redeem my pledge; so, if it can be done in no other way, I will just have an early time set for my marriage with Mr. Closs, and then you shall come to us if any one attempts to oppress you.
"Pray do not suppose that any one here dislikes you. On the contrary, Lady Hope admits that you are charming. The trouble is that here, in England, there is so much prejudice against the stage. I cannot advise you, having broken down so miserably in my promises; but I shall not be helpless forever, and when I have power you shall share it.
"If she insists, if the worst comes to the worst, run away, and come down here—I mean into the neighborhood. I have plenty of pocket-money, and drive my ponies just where I please. Margaret will help us.
"I am sure you will forgive me that I cannot do all I promised. It does not grieve you more than it humiliates me. To think that I should offer so much and perform nothing! But it is not my fault, nor is it the fault of any one here.
"Believe in me, trust me, and love me, for I will deserve it all.
"Yours affectionately,
"CLARA."
Lady Clara wrote this letter on the very night of her return to Oakhurst. That much she insisted on doing. Less, she said, would be cruel treachery.
Neither Lady Hope nor her brother were disposed to interfere, and so the little missive went, carrying both hope and pain with it.
It was some days before Hepworth Closs was able to make his entire peace with the young lady. She could not find it in her heart to oppose her stepmother, whose sad, heavy eyes touched her sympathy; but it was pleasant to tyrannize over a man so much older than herself, whom love had made her slave.