"Bear up--be brave," it said. "We're coming to the ford. Once the river's crossed there are only a few more miles to go before we're safe."
The smile that rose into Mary's eyes found no place to linger there. She turned with Liddiard at the sound to see, a faun no longer, a faun transformed to stalwart man, bearing a distressed maiden in his arms--a knight errant shouldering the precious burden of outraged womanhood and bringing her to safety.
Again the smile crept back into Mary's eyes. Again it crept away.
"Has Lucy hurt herself?" she asked. "What's the matter with her?"
"There were two terrible robbers in the wood," said he as he strode with his burden into the stream. "They had tied her to a tree. She was all naked when I found her. I've killed them both--she's--" Then seeing Liddiard for the first time, he stopped. Astonishment leapt into his eyes. He set his Lucy down and stood staring.
"John," said Mary, "this is a friend of mine, a Mr. Liddiard." She turned to Liddiard. "This is my John," she said.
They met and solemnly shook hands. With eyes that sought for subtlest meanings and hidden things, Mary watched them, the touching of their hands, the look of the eyes. So surely she knew, across the unmeasured distance between them, Liddiard was casting the javelin of his soul to pierce John's heart. In that silence as he stood holding John's hand, she knew he was eagerly, determinedly, poignantly conscious of being father of her child and in that silence was straining to project his consciousness into the very soul of John. Would he respond? She watched them both, but closest by far, her John. Was there some voice in life between father and child which all the years and all their silence could not still? With almost a jealous dread she stood before that moment swift in her mind to see the faintest sign. Would he respond?
For a while John's hand lay in Liddiard's, then of himself he took it away.
"Can we go on playing, Mummy?" he asked. When she knew there had been no answer to Liddiard's call; when, sure in her heart he know none but her, she knelt down on the grass at his side and took his cool cheeks in her hands.
"If you'll kiss me," said she, "if you'll kiss me first."