"Kathleen," he said earnestly, "God knows what I think of you. I can work now. Good-bye, dear."
She raised her eyes to his—mystified and anxious.
He answered them, very gently, but with a firmness there was no gainsaying.
"You are famous," he said; "when I have made a name I will come to you. Will you wait, Kitty?"
"For ever, Hugh," she answered, understanding him so well that that was all she said.
He bent and kissed her hands.
She knelt at the side of his bed, heedless of the presence of the nurse at the other end of the room, and her tears wetted his hand. The right hand and arm were swathed in bandages.
He smiled sadly as he looked at her.
"I am a failure," he said.