"I must meet him, I suppose; I may as well have it over to-day. I want to get rid of the whole business as fast as I can."
Colonel Brand rose as the tall, proud figure glided in, and with a quiet bow passed to a distant sofa.
"We meet, I hope, more amicably than we parted," observed he, with an intent watch on her countenance.
"On my part, yes," answered she, with a deep blush.
"I have heard how you refused to possess my fortune, feeling how you would defraud me," said he. "I feel, of course, grateful to you for your honorable conduct."
The measured tones fell harshly on the woman's high soul; she shrank from the ignoble praise,
"Sir, I could not honestly take what was by right yours," she said, looking proudly at the man, "I never meant to defraud you, or to stand in your way. I only wish to get out of your way, now that you have returned safely home. I am glad that you have come back, Colonel Brand, for I regretted your death most bitterly."
Tears came to her eyes, and through them the thin visage of the soldier seemed to narrow into a travesty of his old self, and she dashed them away, ashamed of her weakness.
"I thank you for the kindness," said the soft, wary voice. "I did not believe I had one friend in England who would mourn my death; perhaps, had I known this, I should never have left it."
She glanced incredulously at him. How could he stoop to such insincerity, who used to glory in his haughty plain speaking?