No purer pleasure ever comes to the human heart than by the accomplishment of a good deed, and Lord Stuart was tasting this in eager anticipation. Thea was now convalescing rapidly, and he gave her the letter to read. She kissed it and shed bitter tears over it. “You should not have written that about me. We can never be anything to each other again,” she said, piteously. “Nonsense! there is a way to get rid of that wicked woman, and you and Norman will soon be all in all to each other again,” he said, cheerily; but Thea shook her golden head despondently. “So you do not believe my prophecies?” he laughed, going down upon his knees before her as she sat among the pillows of the invalid-chair. He put his hands gently on either side of her head and made her look at him. “I want to tell you,” he exclaimed, “that the day you made my acquaintance on the steamer bound for Europe was one of the brightest, most fortunate days of your life. I am going to turn into a fairy godfather, and transmute all your sorrows into joys by a touch of my magic wand. So you will please get strong as soon as you can, for I am anxious to take you back to Jacksonville as soon as you can travel.” “You are jesting,” faltered the beautiful girl. “Not so; I mean every word. You must put perfect faith in me, Thea, and all will come out right,” he replied, reassuringly; and the confidence of his tone made her heart bound with new hope. Dr. Hinton came in at that moment, and Lord Stuart immediately asked him how soon Thea would be able to travel. “In a week,” was the confident answer; and then Lord Stuart fell to laying his plans for their return. He had taken Dr. Hinton partly into his confidence, and in the days that followed he hinted so strongly at a dramatic _dénouement_ of Thea’s sorrows that he finally persuaded the young man to return with them for a brief visit South. “Oh, I am so glad you will go with us!” cried Thea, joyfully. “I want you to fall in love with my dear friend, Nellie Bentley. She would make you a charming wife, Frank.” Poor Frank thought within himself that if he could find any woman fair enough to drive Thea’s image from his sore heart, he would be only too glad to find her, so he made up his mind to return South with them and to woo Thea’s friend for his bride, if she was as charming as she was represented. Lady Edith was quietly happy in the companionship of her dear Thea and the beautiful boy, her dead husband’s namesake. She spent hours amusing him and petting him, never seeming so happy as when she had him in her arms. One day, when they were all sitting quietly in Thea’s room, and Lady Edith had Alan in her arms, caressing him tenderly, her brother exclaimed: “Edith, the sight of you with Thea’s child in your arms brings vividly back to me the days of long ago, before your little girl died, when you used to hold her that way and sing to her so sweetly in the twilight.”