“Why, why ... look! look!—There, listen to that.”
A faint far-away rumble sounded as the rolling of a waggon—so faint that it might almost be an aural delusion. But the girl’s hands were at her ears, and her face was one white wide-eyed mask of terror. The nurse threw her arms round her.
“My dear,” she said, “you are not yourself. That is nothing but a little heat-thunder. Sit down quietly.”
She could feel the girl’s body shaking beneath her hands, but there was no resistance as she drew her to the chair.
“The lights! the lights!” sobbed Mabel.
“Will you promise me to sit quietly, then?”
She nodded; and the nurse went across to the door, smiling tenderly; she had seen such things before. A moment later the room was full of exquisite sunlight, as she switched the handle. As she turned, she saw that Mabel had wheeled herself round in the chair, and with clasped hands was still staring out at the sky above the roofs; but she was plainly quieter again now. The nurse came back, and put her hand on her shoulder.
“You are overwrought, my dear.... Now you must believe me. There is nothing to be frightened of. It is just nervous excitement.... Shall I pull down the blind?”
Mabel turned her face.... Yes, certainly the light had reassured her. Her face was still white and bewildered, but the steady look was coming back to her eyes, though, even as she spoke, they wandered back more than once to the window.
“Nurse,” she said more quietly, “please look again and tell me if you see nothing. If you say there is nothing I will believe that I am going mad. No; you must not touch the blind.”