In 1858 his kind adopted mother died in Paris,—his father a year later, in London; and Theodoric found himself residuary legatee in the sum of nearly one hundred and fifty thousand dollars (twenty-seven thousand pounds).
In the midst of all this prosperity, Theodoric had not been happy. At times the thought of his own sorrowing mother greatly troubled him. And when he found himself again alone in the world, this feeling came over him with redoubled force. Remorse, at last, growing stronger and stronger, gave him no rest; travel brought him no alleviation; and finally, his longing for home becoming irresistible, he took passage for America, and found himself, two weeks later, strolling through the streets of Richmond, with no very definite plans as to how he should make himself known to his family. It was on the very day of his arrival that he encountered little Laura, and discovered that she was his sister.
“What prevented him from revealing himself while he was in Leicester,” said Charley, “was the approach of the war. He would wait till peace came. His mother had already lost him once, he said. Once he was on the very verge of betraying himself. It was when you so deeply agitated him by unconsciously opening his eyes to the fact that, though he knew that Lucy was his sister, she did not. Don’t you remember?”
“Remember!”
✻ ✻ ✻ ✻ ✻ ✻ ✻ ✻ ✻
✻ ✻ ✻ ✻ ✻ ✻ ✻ ✻ ✻
“And so you are going to escort Mrs. Poythress to Harrisonburg and Taylor’s Springs to-morrow morning. You are not strong enough for such a journey; but now that I know all, I too, say go. Are you going to tell his mother who he is?”
“No; he has expressly forbidden that. I am to choose my time, hereafter.”
“I think it would be cruel ever to tell her. To lose such a son twice! No, let the secret remain with you and me forever.”
“It will be unavoidable.”