"Now."
"Here?"
"Yes. Shall I tell him to come up?"
Motionless as a statue, Laura made no sign. Her face pale as death, her hands clasped in front of her, she stood as if transfixed, staring out of the window.
"Shall I tell him to come up?" repeated Elfie impatiently.
Still no answer for a long moment that seemed like an hour. Then all at once, with a quick, convulsive movement, as if by a determined effort she had succeeded in conquering her own will, she turned and cried, with a half sob:
"Yes—yes—tell him to come up!"
Elfie sprang joyously forward. Her arguments had not been in vain, after all. Kissing her friend's cold cheeks, she exclaimed:
"Now you're a sensible dear. I'll bet he's half-frozen down there. I'll send him up at once."
Anxious to get Brockton there before the girl had a chance to change her mind, she was hurrying toward the door, when she happened to notice Laura's red eyes and tear-stained face. That would never do. Coming back, she exclaimed: