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226 If he could have had a picture of her as she stood there with the first fear parting her lips and darkening her eyes, I suppose that Andrew Lanning would have parted with the rest of Anne Withero with small pain indeed.

"I've come to do no harm," he said hastily. "Do not be afraid!"

She was speechless; her raised hand did not fall; it was as if she were frozen where she stood.

"I shall leave you at once," said Andrew quietly, "if you are badly frightened. You have only to tell me."

He had come closer. Now he was astonished to see her turn swiftly toward the door and touch his arm with her hand. "Hush!" she said. "Hush! They may hear you!"

She glided to the door into the hall and turned the lock softly and came to him again.

It made Andrew weak to see her so close, and he searched her face with a hungry and jealous fear, lest she should be different from his dream of her. "You are the same," he said with a sigh of relief. "And you are not afraid of me?"

"Hush! Hush!" she repeated. "Afraid of you? Don't you see that I'm happy, happy, happy to see you again?"

She drew him forward a little, and her hand touched his as she did so. She turned up the lamp, and a flood of strong yellow light went over the room.

"But you have changed," said Anne Withero with a little cry. "Oh, you have changed! What have they been doing to you?"

He was dumb. Something cold that had been forming about his heart was breaking away and crumbling, and a strange warmth and weakness was coming in his