"It is granted." Grace passed an affectionate arm about Elfreda's plump shoulders.
"All right. I don't need to ask, then. I'll just remark that I'm going home with you to Oakdale."
"Elfreda!" Grace brought both arms into play in an energetic hug of the stout girl. "Will you truly come home with me!"
"I will," asserted Elfreda.
"But what about your work?"
"Let the law take its course—without me," was the unconcerned response. "I wouldn't miss seeing old Jean for anything. But that's not my reason for inviting myself to go home with you. I can see that you need a comforter. Do I get the job?"
"You do," laughed Grace, but the laugh ended in a sob against Elfreda's shoulder. It had been a trying day for poor Loyalheart and the inevitable reaction had set in. "You—understand—don't—you?" she murmured brokenly.
"Yes; I know how brave you've been to-day." Elfreda's soothing tones were a trifle unsteady, as she added in tender whimsicality, "I could see."