His dull eyes followed it
and half uncomprehendingly saw it settle and glisten in a nest of brown
pine-needles. Then he put out his hand for a last clasp and strode away
without a word.
Presently Rose heard first the scrape of his boat on the sand, then the soft
sound of his paddles against the water, then nothing but the squirrels and the
woodpeckers and the thrushes, then not even these,--nothing but the beating of
her own heart.
She sat down heavily, feeling as if she were wide awake for the first time in
many weeks. How had things come to this pass with her?
Claude Merrill had flattered her vanity and given her some moments of
restlessness and dissatisfaction with her lot; but he had not until today
really touched her heart or tempted her, even momentarily, from her allegiance
to Stephen. His eyes had always looked unspeakable things; his voice had
seemed to breathe feelings that he had never dared put in words; but today he
had really stirred her, for although he had still been vague, it was easy to
see that his love for her had passed all bounds of discretion. She remembered
his impassioned farewells, his despair, his doubt as to whether he could
forget her by plunging into the vortex of business, or whether he had better
end it all in the river, as so many other broken-hearted fellows had done.
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