'Sir William is there, with Captain Marsworth,' said Nelly. 'Cicely comes here to-morrow.'
'Does she expect me to give her my room?' said Bridget sharply.
'Not at all. She likes the little spare-room.'
'Or pretends to! Has Sir William been here to-day?'
'Yes, he came round.'
A few more questions and answers led to silence broken only by the crackling of the fire. The firelight played on Nelly's cheek and throat, and on her white languid hands. Presently it caught her wedding-ring, and Bridget's eye was drawn to the sparkle of the gold. She sat looking absently at her sister. She was thinking of a tiny room in a hut hospital—of the bed—and of those eyes that had opened on her. And there sat Nelly—knowing nothing!
It was all a horrible anxiety. But it couldn't last long.
CHAPTER XIV
'So you are not at church?'
The voice was Marsworth's as he stepped inside the flagged passage of the farm, Nelly having just opened the door to him.