"Come," he urged gently. "There is nothing to fear. You must trust me, for I am indeed your friend, little girl. We will find the one who is expecting you--who will love you and be a sister to you." A look of trustful obedience came into her sweet blue eyes, now disfigured by much weeping, and without hesitation she walked beside him past the group of rough-looking men, dirty, barefooted children, scurrying pigs and dogs, to the kitchen door. An Indian woman with a baby in her arms stood in the shadow of the room and motioned them to enter. "Is Miss Hathaway here?" inquired Livingston. At the sound of his voice the door of an inner room opened and Hope, her slender form gowned as he had first seen her, came quickly across the untidy room toward them. "I am Hope," she said to the girl, taking both of her soft little hands in her own and looking in wonder at the childish face with its setting of wavy gold hair. Suddenly the broken-hearted girl was in her arms sobbing out her grief upon her shoulder. Hope led her to a seat, removed her hat and coat, and uttered words of endearment to her, soothing her as she would have done a child. Could this impulsive, loving girl be Hope, wondered Livingston, who still stood in the doorway. She smoothed back the bright hair from the pretty, childish face, exclaiming: "How beautiful you are! And what a little thing to have such a grief! Oh, it is cruel, _cruel_! Cry, dear, cry all you want to--it will do you good, and the pain will sooner be gone." "_O, Gott im Himmel_," sobbed the German girl, "_gieb mir Muth es zu ertragen!_" "But you are, oh, so much braver than I. Look at me, see what a great, big strong thing I am, and _I_ moaned and cried because the world wasn't made to my liking! Oh, it makes me _ashamed_ now, when I see such a little, frail thing as you suffer such a real sorrow! But I am your friend--your sister, if you will have me." "How goot you are, _meine liebe Freundin_!" sobbed the girl. "May you never have reason to change your opinion," replied Hope slowly, in German. "She speaks my language!" exclaimed the German girl, with something like hopefulness in her voice. "But very poorly," apologized Hope, looking for the first time at the man standing quietly in the doorway. "It will comfort her that you speak it at all," he replied. "But without any language you would still be a comfort to her. I will leave her in your hands, Miss Hathaway. She has had a long journey and--must be very tired." He bowed and turned to go, but, recollecting something, came back into the room. "I am going now," he said to the German girl, "but I will come to see you often. You need have no fear when you are with--Hope." Hope turned to him impulsively. "You will do as you say," she begged. "You will come often to see her." Then added, "You know she'll be terribly lonely at first!" "It will give me great pleasure, if I may," he replied. She held out her hand to him.