Page:Whyte-Melville--Bones and I.djvu/112

 trustful, and fresh-hearted—spare him and let him go.'

"She was fitting the glove on her faultless little hand. Her brow seemed so calm, so soft and pure, that for a moment I thought I had conquered, but looking up from her feminine employment, I recognized the hungry glitter in those dark, merciless eyes, and I knew there was no hope.

" 'It is too late,' she answered, 'too late to persuade either him or me. It is no fault of mine. It is fate. For him—for the others—for all of us. Sometimes I wish it had not been so. Mine has been an unhappy life, and there seems to be no end, no resting-place. I can no more help myself than a drowning wretch, swept down by a torrent; but I am too proud to catch at the twigs and straws that would break off in my hand. I would change places with you willingly. Yes—you in that