Nell of Shorne Mills

Sir Archie would be, then, in the library at seven o'clock; he would ask

for the countess; she would go to him, and--Nell shuddered, and walked

up and down. If there were any one to whom she could go for advice! But

there was no one. At all costs, the truth must be kept from the earl;

his wife must be saved.

It was a terrible position for a young and inexperienced girl; but,

despite her youth and inexperience, the note could scarcely have fallen

into better hands than Nell's; for she possessed courage, and was not

afraid for herself. Most girls, keenly though they might desire to save

their friend, would have destroyed the note and left the rest to

Providence; but Nell's spirit had been trained in the bracing air of

Shorne Mills, and her views tempered by many a tussle with tide and wind

in the _Annie Laurie_; and the pluck which lay dormant in the slight

figure rose now to the struggle for her friend's safety. She had grown

to love the woman who had confided her heart's sorrow to her that night,

and she meant to save her. But how? Sir Archie would be there at seven,

and Lady Wolfer must be kept in ignorance of his presence; and he must

be sent away convinced of the hopelessness of his passion.

Nell walked up and down, unconscious of weariness, ignorant that in his

own room the earl was listening to her footsteps, and putting his own

construction upon her agitation. Now and again she thought of Drake and

her own love affair. Were all men alike? Were there no good men in the

world? Were they all selfish and unscrupulous in the quest of their own

interest and amusements? Love! The word sounded like a mockery, a

delusion, a snare. Drake had loved, or thought he loved her, until Lady

Luce had beckoned him back to her; and this other man, Sir Archie--how

long would he continue to love the unhappy woman if she yielded to him?

The silver clock on the mantelshelf struck five, and Nell, worn out at

last, and still apparently far away from any solution of the problem

which she had set herself, flung herself on the bed. She had scarcely

closed her eyes before a way of helping Lady Wolfer presented itself to

her.

Her face crimsoned, and she winced and closed her eyes with a slight

shudder; but though she shrank from the ordeal, she resolved to make it.

Lady Wolfer had been kind to her, had won her love, and, more than all

else, had confided in her, and she--Nell--would save her at any cost.