Dick drew her closer to him for answer. 'We must not stay here any longer,' he said.
'But I cannot go home, Dick—to that house.'
'You'll sleep with me, dear, at the inn.'
'Sleep with you?' she repeated and allowed herself to be led.
The furnace fires had increased by tens; each dazzling line was now crossed and interwoven with other lines; and through the tears that blinded her eyes Kate saw an immense sea of fire, and beyond nothing but unfathomable grey.
XI
Next morning the sky was low and grey, and the house-tops appeared dimly through the mist. A little later the clouds began to gather, and it seemed like rain, but now and then a shaft of sunlight fell on a corner of the table within a few inches of Kate's impatiently moving fingers. She had not been able to eat any breakfast—had just crumbled a piece of bread and sipped a cup of tea, and begged Dick to hasten. It seemed that he hadn't a thought for her, of what her fate would be if they missed the train. She couldn't spend another night in Hanley.
'Dick, dear, do make haste. We shall miss the train.'
'We've plenty of time,' he answered, and she read in his face the desire for another plate of crumpets, and she prayed that he might not ask for another egg.
'Dick, it's ten minutes to ten.'