Had she then ceased to love her faithless husband?
Ah, no! for pure love like hers is of immortal life and cannot die. But she had ceased to sorrow for him, for sorrow is of mortal birth and cannot live forever.
She felt safe under the fatherly care of the fine old head of the family, cheerful in the company of her affectionate young friends Dick and Anna, and happy—oh, deeply, unutterably happy!—in the possession of her beautiful boy. She felt no trouble.
“Baby fingers, waxen touches pressed it from the mother’s breast.”
She never heard from Alick; but then, as she did not expect to hear from him, she was not disappointed.
She never heard from Cedarwood either; but then as she had left directions with the servants only to have letters written to her in case of necessity, she felt that, in this instance, “no news is good news.”
Mammy was growing rather restive and desirous of returning to her home, but Drusilla besought her to remain a little longer at Old Lyon Hall.
“Wait,” she said, “until the next spell of fine weather, when baby will be able to travel, and I too will return to Cedarwood. I must not stay away from the home provided for me by my husband, nor yet tax the hospitality of my dear friends longer.”
Mammy looked puzzled, for though the faithful old household servants had carefully forborne to speak of unpleasant family affairs in the presence of the nurse, whom they looked upon as a stranger and an alien, still she had heard enough to give her the impression that young Mr. Lyon had abandoned his wife. Therefore Mammy was rather bewildered by this talk of returning to Cedarwood.
“I do not think as the General and the young people will consent to part with you, ma’am; and indeed I think it will a’most break all their hearts to lose little Master Leonard,” said the nurse.