Tess lay in his arms, mute and unresponsive.
"Say one little kind word to me, Tess," he implored again, brokenly.
But Tess couldn't speak. She felt her tongue burn as if infinitesimal sparks had touched each groove upon it. She could not stay in his arms! Before the world he belonged to another woman. She pushed him away, drew herself from his embrace, and sat down again. Her action brought a fierce ejaculation from the boy's lips.
When Frederick ordered his horse that morning, Madelene had slipped her hand into his.
"May I go with you, dear?" she begged. "Do order my horse, too, won't you?"
He colored to the roots of his hair and shrugged his shoulders impatiently.
"I'd rather go by myself," he returned so curtly that Madelene bit her lips to keep back the tears.
Stung with jealousy, the young wife watched her husband ride out under the bare trees to the road beyond. Then she ordered her own horse, and dressed herself quickly.
Affairs between the young couple had reached a crucial point. Madelene's suspicions of Frederick were unusually active. She had it clearly in mind that he had gone to the Skinner hut. All the distance to the lake her face burned. She knew well enough she was doing something unpardonable, but how could she stay calmly at home when stinging jealousy goaded her to action?
She cantered past Kennedy's farm and on down the hill, her thoughts in a turmoil. If Frederick were not with the squatter girl, how happy she'd be! She hadn't formulated an excuse for Tessibel if she found her suspicions incorrect. She'd have to tell her something reasonable. Ah, she would pretend she'd come about the church singing.