She rose and went toward him. He was standing where the light fell full upon his face, and she was shocked to see how ghastly and ill he looked.
"Where are you going?" she briefly inquired.
"I don't quite—know; I——"
"How did you find me?"
"You didn't think I would lose sight of you, did you, after once getting a glimpse of you? I had to know something about Dorothy; I couldn't stand it—the silence and the uncertainty—any longer."
"You will not come here again?"
There was a note of blended authority and appeal in Helen's tone.
"No, I will never trouble you again. I don't think I'll trouble anybody long," he said grimly. "But, Helen"—a scarlet streak shot vividly across his forehead—"could you let me have a little money? I have only a few cents, and I haven't had anything to eat since——"
He broke off suddenly, and began to cough distressingly, his head bowed low in humiliation because of his destitution.
Helen's heart bounded into her throat.