Elliott had had a succession of busy months, when the case was called for the notorious moonshiner, Burr Chester, who had killed the sheriff while resisting arrest. The Grand Jury had found a true bill against him for murder in the first degree and Elliott Harding had been engaged to aid in the prosecution. It was no common case to deal with, and he was keenly conscious of this fact. After two long weeks of incessant work, a verdict of guilty was brought in, but as a last resort to save his client’s neck, an appeal was taken to the higher courts.
After this Elliott had gone home weak, nervous and excited beyond natural tension. He spent a restless night, and the next morning was unexpectedly called to Boston to attend to business that required his immediate presence. He went over to let Dorothy know of his plans. Under a spell of sadness and impulse he said passionately:
“If I left, not knowing that a near day was to bring me back to you I could not bear it. Our wedding day is just three weeks off, and from that time on you are to be inseparably mine—mine forever!”
She clung to him quivering, tears, despite her efforts to be strong, escaping down her cheek. He held her to his heart and soothed her back to something of the calm she had lost.
Just ten days he expected to be gone.
The intervening time busily passed in preparations for the approaching wedding. Besides that, Dorothy’s heart had feasted upon the letters that had daily come on the noon train out of the North. Each afternoon since Elliott’s absence, she had been to town for the mail, having no patience to await its coming from the office by any neighboring messenger who chanced to pass that way.
To-day’s expected letter was to be the last, for to-morrow Elliott would be with her again.
Oh, Love! Love! life is sweet to all mortals, but it was particularly sweet to these two.
After receiving her letter Dorothy started the short way home, singing lightly some old love tune. In the deep forest around her the faithful ring-dove poured forth his anthem of abiding peace.