'I am not a soldier, Mrs. Wylie.'
'Resigned...?' she whispered.
'No; turned out.'
Unconsciously she was swaying backwards and forwards a little, as if in lamentation, while she rubbed one hand over the other.
'Drink,' continued Huston harshly; '... drink, and Alice drove me to it.'
There was a long silence in the room after this. The glowing fire creaked and crackled at times; occasionally a cinder fell with considerable clatter into the fender, but neither of these people moved. At last Mrs. Wylie looked up.
'Captain Huston,' she said pleadingly.
'Yes.'
He looked across, and saw the tears quivering on her lashes.
'Come back to me to-morrow morning,' was her prayer. 'I cannot ... I cannot advise you yet ... because I do not quite understand. Theo Trist is coming to lunch to-day. Will you come back to-morrow?'