Vera was clear of the cave by this time, and her voice ceased. A few yards farther on and Marion came up to her. She was looking pale and ghastly; there were rings under her eyes; her nerves had had a terrible shock.
"I couldn't imagine where you had got to," she said. "I looked round, and you had disappeared. I feared you had been spirited away."
"By the cruel foe, Marion? One by one we go. It may be your turn next."
"Would to Heaven that it was!" Marion whispered vehemently. "A little time ago I fancied that I was strong enough to bear up against anything. Now I know what a feeble creature I am. Before this happened I would a thousand times have been the victim myself. And I—I——"
She paused and beat the air impotently. Vera wondered. Could this really be the strong, self-reliant Marion who had uplifted them in so many troubles, this the girl who always had a smile on her face and words of comfort on her lips? This was a weak, frightened creature, with eyes that were haunted.
"Be brave," said Vera, "and be yourself. What should we do without you? Why, you are so full of remorse you might have been responsible for Geoffrey's death yourself."
Marion looked up swiftly and then her eyes fell.
"It is because I love him," she said.
"And I love him, too. But I try to be brave."
Marion was silent under the reproof. Vera was calm and collected. What a reaction there would be later, Marion thought.