"Thee did, indeed. The night was wild and cold."
"Did I fall on the threshold?"
"Upon the very threshold, and let us thank G.o.d for that, because if thee had fallen at the gate or in the path we should never have heard thee."
Pepeeta struggled to a sitting posture as her memory clarified, fixed her wide open eyes upon Dorothea and asked, pathetically, "Where is he?"
"I do not know who thee means," said Dorothea, laying her hand on the invalid"s shoulders and trying gently to push her back upon her pillow.
"David!" she exclaimed, "David. Tell me if you know, for it seems to me I shall die if I do not hear."
"I do not know, my love. It is a long time since we have heard from David. But thee must lie down. Thee is not strong enough to talk."
She did not need to force her now. The muscles relaxed, and Pepeeta sank back upon her pillow, sobbing like a little child, while Dorothea stroked her forehead. The soothing touch of her hand and her gentle presence calmed the agitated and disappointed heart. The sobs became less frequent, the tears ceased to flow, and sleep, coming like a benediction, brought the balm of oblivion.
The boy, with his great brown eyes, looked wonderingly from the face of the invalid to that of his mother, who sat silently weaving in her imagination the story of this life, from the few strands which she had seized in this brief and broken conversation.
The next morning when Pepeeta awakened she was not only rested and refreshed by this natural sleep, but was restored to the full possession of her consciousness and her memory.
When Dorothea came in from her morning duties to see how her patient fared, she was startled by the change, for the invalid had recovered that calm self-possession which she had lost before beginning her journey, and now that her uncertainty was ended had already begun to face disappointment with fort.i.tude and resolution.
The nurse seated herself by the patient, who said humbly:
"May I talk now?"
"If thee feels strong enough and can do it without exciting thyself, thee may. But if thee cannot, thee had better wait a little longer. Thee is very weak."
"But I am much better, am I not?"
"Yes, thee is much better, but thee is far from well."
"Yes, I am far from well; but it will do me good to talk. I have much to tell, and I cannot rest until I tell it all."
"Thee need not hurry--need thee?"
"Yes--I feel in haste. I have no right to all this kindness, for I have done this household a great wrong and I must confess it. It is a sad, sad story. Will you listen to it now?"
"If it will do thee good instead of harm, I will."
"Then prop me up in bed, if you please. Place me so that I can talk freely. There, thank you. You are so gentle and so kind. I have never in all my life had any one touch me so gently. And now, if you are ready, be seated in the great chair and turn your face to the wall."
"To the wall?"
"Yes, to the wall. I cannot bear to see the reproaches that must fill those kind eyes."
"But, my dear, thee shall not see any reproaches in my eyes. Who am I that I should judge thee? We are commanded in the holy Bible to judge not, lest we be judged again. Tell thy story without fear. Thee shall tell it to ears that shall hear thee patiently, and a heart that is not devoid of pity."
"I cannot, cannot," cried Pepeeta, "do as I pray! Look out of the window. Look anywhere but at my face. Let me lie here and look up. Let me tell my story as if to G.o.d alone. It will be easy for me to do that, for I have told it to Him again and again."
Fearing to agitate her, Dorothea did as she desired.
"Are we alone?"
"Yes, all alone."
"Well, then, I will begin," Pepeeta said, and in a voice choked with emotion, the poor sufferer breathed out the tale of her sin and her sorrow. She told all. She did not shield herself, and everywhere she could she softened the wrong done by David. It was a long story, and was interrupted only by the ticking of the great clock in the hallway, telling off the moments with as little concern as when three years before it had listened to the story told to David by his mother. When the confession was ended a silence followed, which Dorothea broke by asking gently:
"May I look, now?"
"If you can forgive me," Pepeeta answered.
The tender-hearted woman rose, approached the bedside and kissed the quivering lips.
"Have you forgiven me?" Pepeeta asked, seizing the face in her thin hands and looking almost despairingly into the great blue eyes.
"As I hope to be forgiven," Dorothea answered, kissing her again and again.
A look of almost perfect happiness diffused itself over the pale countenance.
"It is too much--too much. How can it be? It was such a great wrong!"
she exclaimed,
"Yes, it was a great wrong. Thee has sinned much, but much shall be forgiven if thee is penitent, and I think thee is. No love nor pardon should be withheld from those who mourn their sins. Our G.o.d is love! And we are so ignorant and frail. It is a sad story, as thee says, but it is better to be led astray by our good pa.s.sions than by our bad. I have noticed that it is sometimes by our holiest instincts that we are betrayed into our darkest sins! It was heaven"s brightest light--the light of love--that led thee astray, my child, and even love may not be followed with closed eyes! But thee does not need to be preached to."
Astonished at such an almost divine insight and compa.s.sion, Pepeeta exclaimed, "How came you to know so much of the tragedy of human life, so much of the soul"s weakness and guilt; you who have lived so quietly in this happy home?"
"By consulting my own heart, dear. We do not differ in ourselves so much as in our experiences and temptations. But thee has talked enough about thy troubles. Tell me thy name? What shall we call thee?"
"My name is Pepeeta."
"And mine is Dorothea."
"Oh! Dorothea," Pepeeta exclaimed, "do you think we shall ever see him again?"
"I cannot tell. We had made many inquiries and given up in despair. And now when we least expected news, thee has come! We will cherish hope again. We were discouraged too easily."
"Oh! how strong you are--how comforting. Yes, we will cherish hope, and when I am well I will start out, and search for him everywhere. I shall find him. My heart tells me so."
"But thee is not well enough, yet," Dorothea said, with a kind smile, "and until thee is, thee must be at rest in thy soul and, abiding here with us, await the revelation of the divine will."
"Oh, may I stay a little while? It is so quiet and restful here. I feel like a tired bird that has found a refuge from a storm. But what will your husband say, when he hears this story?"
"Thee need not be troubled about that. His door and heart are ever open to those who labor and are heavy laden. The Christ has found a faithful follower in him, Pepeeta. It was he who first divined thy story."
"Then you knew me?"
"We had conjectured."
"Then I will stay, oh, I will stay a little while, and perhaps, perhaps--who knows?" she clasped her hands, her soul looked out of her eyes, and a smile of genuine happiness lit up her sad face.