CHAPTER XL,.—Continued.

Taranaki Herald, Volume LIII, Issue 12867, 24 May 1905, Page 6

CHAPTER XL,.— Continued.

] lie had gone back to the past, to \ those days when, as a boy, he j jhaicl studied with David Forrester | and played in the rectory garden {with the dark-haired,, dark-eyed (little child who already ruled the j household like a queen, j It hurt him to realise that Ca- } riua could have sunk so low. For j to him her marriage with Leopold 'Vermey signified a kind of degradation ; and the intimacy with Detch- \ mar an even worse one. ! His grief over | his dear old ' irieml's death was still new. I If for *o other reason, he would have loved David Forrester, bo1 cause it was the old rector who i had joined , Mary to him as his wile. I Sir George shaded his face with his hand. " How had he cared for that young wife ? How demonstrated his gratitude for the won- ! derful gift of her love ? ! Long, long ago, he had bitterly : repented the hard words he had spoken about Mary. He knew now ' that she had loved him purely and • truly, that it was lovo alone that 'had" permitted her to become his • wife, with what she called her • "sin" lying unconfessed jon her heart. 1 <He J could have bitten out his tongue for having so cruelly denounced her to Bay Conyers. ! But Bay needed no words from him to let him know how true was his repentance for that outburst of harsh denunciation. j The valet opened the door and ushered in one of the doctors who ', attended Sir George during the : worst part of his illness. Naturally the journey to town and the in- | cessant , anxiety retarded / j Sir George's; recovery. Yet he did make progress, though it was slow. 1 Town lis much too hot and stuffy for you, Sir George," the doctor said now. "You ought to get down to Yelverton. You could not have finer air." : But George Verney only smiled and shook his head," and after a little chat the doctor went away. When he was gone the young man rested back in his chair and closed his eyes. His longing to have news or Hilary had passed into a sharp pain. j\s he sat with his eyes closed, he looked worn a nd inexpressibly sorrowful. Lady Susan coming 'in vcrv sottlv, saw his look and paused ; but be moved and looked round. There was a radiance in her expression which he did not catch at first. But as she spoke her voice seemed to him to have a new note. "Do you know what your doctor has been saying to me ?" she asked. '"That it is my positive duty to urge you to hasten to Yelverton without delay." Sir George frowned.. 1 "It is impossible !" "Nothing is impossible," answered LatlV Susan. She was very restless. She moved to the window and walked away again. She picked up the paper, she threw down her gloves ; and all the time her eyes were so bright. She looked so pretty, almost young. "Will you go if Henry and I go, too ?" she asked. 'George Verney did not answer. He was looking at Lady Susan intently, with a strange^ eagerness. '"No," he 'answered, in a strained voice. "I will not go back to Yelverton without mv wife." Lady Susan smiled through her tears. "And suppose— T only say suppose, that we do not find Mary— what then ?" "I shall stay here till I do find her," said 'Verney, quietly, but he turned his face away. . Lady Susan came behind! him, bent oivcr him and kissed him. "You will go to Yelverton totlpy, George, dear," she said, soft]v " «f or -_yMary will go with you ! Nc'v— no, George !" Lady Susan exclaimed eagerly, as he sprang to his feet. "Don't excite ■ yoursclS— don't forget you are still so weak." Bait George Verney did not hear. He was ' staring at the door, where Mary stood, not the pretty daintily dressed Mary, from whom he had parted, but a pale, a wistful a simply garbed creature just like one of those hundreds oL girls whom he had watched passfn«- in the street below. Before they could prevent him, he had crossed" i the room, atidf had knelt on the ground. Lady Susan turned and stole away as she heard Mary give a little cry, as she saw the girl's arms go about ' him to lift him to his feet again. "Now they don't want me, Lady Susan whispered to, herself, and" she closed the door very noiselesslyi They did not hear her go ; they saw "nothing but the love that was written in one another's eyes. .George Verney let her help him 1o rise, and then he opened his arms and she lay on his heart. \nd he was kissing her each time I Mie. tried to speak— to stammer I out a plea for forgiveness, he dosed her lips with kisses. Bui once she looked up at him. and he knew she must speak. ' "You! — yon arc (oo good to me," she said. "Though 1 know now 1 . am not an impostor—do you for- \ iret " "Yes," he whispered, passionate-

ly. "I forget everything, except that yon are my wife and that you have, come back to me !" "Yet," l M«ary said a little later, i "it was a great wrong, iAh I 1 have prayed so often that I might be granted the mercy of confessing my wrong ] George, God has j been very good to me. All my life I shall try to be grateful. 1 shall try to do gooti. Oh ! I am so happy' — so nappy !" * * * * When Sir George and Lady Verney went back to Yelverton the year had grown older 'b)y two months, and a great reception was arranged for them, a matter which occupied Lady Susan a great deal. There were triumphal arches and flags, and when the young couple stepped from the platform to the carriage, the horses were unharnessed and they were dragged b} tager hands right up to the door of their beautiful old home. It was noted by every one that Sir George was quite himself again. For Mary, in her white garb, there was loud-voiced admiration.

"She has grown sweeter and lovelier than ever/ said Lady Susan, in the happy husband's ear ; then, more quiefly, she adjded : "I have something to tellj you, George. It is about that Isobel Somerton. She wrote from Par;-) to me a few days ago ; site saiu these, alarming emotions in the out well for Mary ; and somehow, strange as it may seem, I believe her. Her whole ambition was to work her son into this place ; with his death ambition has died, too. She lives in his old studio. \ Whatever her faults were, at least she loved her son."

Before talking leave of Isobel Somerton, it may perhaps be as well to briefly refer to the fate of the ambitious and conscienceless lady whom she shocked by| unexpectedly visiting at her hotel. When Carina learned of the happy reunion of Sir George and his bride, and that Mary was Hugo Verney's daughter, the real heiress, her mortification and anger could 'not be repressed. She manifested I she was glad that all had worked presence of 'the unfortunate I/eopold, and roundly abused him, as if he were the cause of Mary's triumph. This was more than her ease-loving husband could endure. He quickly pac-ked Ins belongings, deserted her, and in I**1 ** a lew weeks became the companion! of a fourthLiss vaudeville actress in Paris. The ingratitude of the man for whom she had sacrificed so much •o disheartened Carina that she pined into a mere shadow, and iv less than four months died, a repentant woman, in a'• I/Ondon •harity hospital. By ihe advice of Lady Susan, it was 'decided that no mention should be made to Mary, at least for the present, of Isobel Somerton, lest even the name oli that personage should recall unpleasant experiences.

( %et us be cautious," urged Sir George ; "we must say nothing of Mrs Somcrton to my 'darling just y<t a while. I assure };ou, even now 'IMary is sensitive about herself and what she was in the past. vSome day I >haU lu^pe to drive away from her memory even the recollection of that misery, when she was tempted so strangely. "Here she is! Now, 7/-uly Verne v," said Sir George, with a bright laugh, "if you have finished shaking h-nuls \\iih everybody, i want some attention, if you oh asc."

"lie wants such a lot of aUen-

tion!" cried Mary, laughingly, lo Lady Susan ; but she blushed prett ly, ami lilting her lips, she <;ave li.*r husband the kiss he cralved. "Thank God their happiness has mine to its fullness," said Susan A r in<ster to herself, and she followed them into the library, where Sir George's aunt and Sir Henry i'Vlinster were waiting to add their loving greetings to the splendid welcome that Yelverton and its people hail given to their lord and l.idy. THE END.