“God bless you,” he murmured when the prayer was finished and arose to his feet; then bending over her hand he touched it softly with his lips.
“Good-bye!” he said chokingly and started for the door.
“Good-bye!” came slowly in return, her face no less moist than his. Presently she murmured like one in a dream: “Dick, Dick!”
The man hastened his steps and did not turn. At the door, however, he burst out in an agony of despair: “Girl! Girl...!”
But when the Girl looked up he had reached the open. She listened a moment to the retreating steps, then raising her tear-stained face above her arms, she sobbed out: “He’s gone—he’s gone—he’s gone...!” She started in pursuit of him, but half-way across the room she fell into Nick’s arms, crying out:
“He’s gone, he’s gone, he’s gone! Dick! Dick! Dick...!”
Terribly affected at the sight of the Girl’s sorrow, the little barkeeper did his best to soothe her, now patting her little blonde head as it rested upon his arm, now murmuring words of loving tenderness.
Suddenly she raised her head, and then it was that she saw for the first time the men standing huddled together near the door. In a flash the truth of the situation dawned upon her. With a look of indescribable horror upon her face she turned upon Nick, turned upon them all with:
“You knew, Nick—you all knew you had ’im! You knew you had ’im an’ you’re goin’ to kill ’im! But you shan’t—no, you shan’t kill ’im—you shan’t—you shan’t...!”
Once more she started in pursuit of her lover, but only to fall with her face against the door, sobbing as if her heart would break.