‘It is nothing infectious, of course, Sir?’ said the mother, a little startled by this hastiness.
‘Infectious—nonsense! why, you know better than that, Mrs. King; I only meant that you’d better get rid of him as quick as you can, unless you wish to set up a hospital at once—and a capital nurse you’d be! I would leave word with the relieving officer for you, but that I’ve got to go on to Stoke, and shan’t be at home till too late.’
Mrs. King’s heart ached for the poor forlorn orphan, when she remembered what she had heard of the nursing in Elbury Union. She did not know how to turn him from her door the day he had saved her son from danger such as she could not think of without shuddering; and yet, what could she do? Her rent and the winter before her, a heavy doctor’s bill, and the loss of Alfred’s work!
Slowly she went up the stairs again to the narrow landing that held the bed where Paul Blackthorn lay. He was quite still, but there were large tears coursing one after the other from his eyes, his hollow cheeks quite glazed with them.
‘Is the pain so very bad?’ she said in her soft voice, putting her hand over his hot forehead, in the way that Alfred liked.
‘I don’t—know,’ he answered; and his black eyes, after looking up once in her face with the piteous earnest glance that some loving dogs have, shut themselves as if on purpose to keep in the tears, but she saw the dew squeezing out through the eye-lashes.
‘My poor boy, I’m sure it’s very bad for you,’ she said again.
‘Please, don’t speak so kind,’ said Paul; and this time he could not prevent a-sob. ‘Nobody ever did so before, and—’ he paused, and went on, ‘I suppose they do it up in Heaven, so I hope I shall die.’
‘You are vexing about the Union,’ said Mrs. King, without answering this last speech, or she knew that she should begin to cry herself.
‘I did think I’d done with them,’ said Paul, with another sob. ‘I said I’d never set foot in those four walls again! I was proud, maybe; but please don’t stop with me! If you wouldn’t look and speak like that, the place wouldn’t seem so hard, seeing I’m bred to it, as they say;’ and he made an odd sort of attempt to laugh, which ended in his choking himself with worse tears.