Il8 The Real Charlotte. 



swell new friends — Christopher Dysart, for instance, who 

 you are looking out for so hard — it would be a very different 

 story." 



By the time this indictment was delivered, Francie's face 

 had more colour in it than it had known for some days; 

 she kept her eyes on the ground and said nothing. 



" I knew it was the way of the world to kick a fellow out 

 of the way when you had got as much as you wanted out of 

 him, and I suppose as I am an old married man I have no 

 right to expect anything better, but I did think you'd have 

 treated me better than this ! " 



" Don't," she said brokenly, looking up at him with her 

 eyes full of tears ; " I'm too tired to fight you." 



Lambert took her hand quickly. " My child," he said, 

 in a voice rough with contrition and pity, " I didn't mean 

 to hurt you ; I didn't know what I was saying." He 

 tenderly stroked the hand tha,t lay limply in his. " Tell me 

 you're not vexed with me." 



" No," said P'rancie, with a childish sob ; " but you said 

 horrid things to me — " 



" Well, I never will again," he said soothingly. " We'll 

 always be friends, won't we ? " with an interrogatory pressure 

 of the hand. He had never seen her in such a mood as 

 this ; he forgot the inevitable effect on her nerves of what 

 she had gone through, and his egotism made him believe 

 that this collapse of her usual supple hardihood was due to 

 the power of his reproaches. 



** Yes," she answered, with the dawn of a smile. 



"Till the next time, anyhow," continued Lambert, still 

 holding her hand in one of his, and fumbling in his breast 

 pocket with the other. ^' And now, look here what I 

 brought you to try and make up to you for nearly drowning 

 you." He gently pulled her hand down from her eyes, and 

 held up a small gold bangle, with a horse-shoe in pearls on 

 it. " Isn't that a pretty thing ? " 



Francie looked at it incredulously, with the tears still 

 shining on her eyelashes. 



" Oh, Mr. Lambert, you don't mean you got that for me? 

 I couJAn't take it. Why, it's real gold ! " 



" \\ ell, you've got to take it. Look what's written on it." 



She took it from him. and saw engraved inside the 



