"I believe you," answered the doctor. "A brave woman can do wonders. Women are unselfish; they can hide their own feelings to comfort and succor another. Miss Harman, I am sorry for you, I have bad news for you."
"I know it, Sir George. My father is very ill."
"Your father is as seriously ill as a man can be to be alive; in short, he is—dying."
"Is there no hope?"
"None."
"Must he die soon?" asked Charlotte, after a brief pause.
"That depends. His malady is of such a nature that any sudden shock, any sudden grief will probably kill him instantly. If his mind is kept perfectly calm, and all shocks are kept from him, he may live for many months."
"Oh! terrible!" cried Charlotte.
She covered her face. When she raised it at last it looked quite haggard and old.
"Sir George," she said, "I do not doubt that in your position as a doctor you have come across some secrets. I am going to confide in you, to confide in you to a certain measure."