His mother’s hand slipped from its hold; but he did not move. He was in a very whirlwind of surprise, pain and doubt. “You have not known? No; she hid her secret too well! There is a woman fit to be your wife--proud, loving, courageous, a companion to cheer, a helpmate to stimulate your ambition. Had you not been so blind, Stuart, you might have seen this. What do you say now?” “I can say nothing,” he answered, still in the same low tones. “This has stunned me. You must let me think, mother; I have not the power to speak now.” “Yes, think--and think well,” Mrs. Crosbie said gently. Something told her that she had won; Vane’s devotion had touched the right chord. She watched her son move to the door in silence. “We will speak of this again another time,” he said, with constraint. A wave of compunction passed through Mrs. Crosbie’s mind when she was alone. Would Vane, after all, bring him happiness? She had tricked and deceived him. But this momentary feeling was soon lost in the glad thrill of ambition that stirred her breast. Stuart married, and in Parliament, she had nothing more to wish for. In a maze of troubled thoughts Stuart strode down the wet paths. Vane loved him; and yet she had put her own feelings on one side and ministered tenderly, thoughtfully, kindly to him! What depths of womanly sweetness in such a sacrifice--what a generous, noble nature! His heart warmed with gratitude toward her, though it cooled again as he remembered that she loved him. What could he do--whither turn in this dilemma? Vane was dear to him as a friend, as a sister, but not as the woman he would make his wife. And to make any woman his wife now, when such sadness darkened his life, was almost impossible. What must he do? Could he let her live on alone, with the sorrow he knew from experience to be so bitter wearing out her heart? Would it be a generous return for all she had done, for the noble tenderness with which she had tried to bring him happiness? No, no, a thousand times no! If he could no longer have joy, if gladness were gone forever, he had still the peaceful pleasure of bringing gladness to another’s heart. His mother was right--it was his duty to face the world, and Vane should be his wife.