Odette dragged herself to the bed-room and closed the door. So Germaine loved Paul, as Odette loved Claude! Why had one fallen, while the other stood firm? She glanced around the simple chamber, so pure and sweet. The bed stood in the alcove, half hidden by the pretty muslin curtains. A few vases and photographs lay on the mantelpiece, with a little statue of the Virgin Mary in the center. Did Germaine's strength of character come from that little statue? Could it be her religion that had sustained and comforted her in her hours of darkness? Odette meditated long and deeply. Which was true, Atheism or Religion? Which of the two sisters was the better prepared for the battle of life; the one with her beads and images, or the one with logic and reason? Odette dared not reply. Germaine had not fallen, simply because her temptation had not been as great. It was too absurd to think that her faith in some stories about a cross and a child in a manger, had given her the victory. But Odette was persuaded that Germaine's flame-lit eyes revealed a love as passionate as her own. Perhaps she, too, would have conquered, if she had had this faith; and how it would have consoled her in her present loathsome degradation! Did not Christ forgive the Magdalen at his feet? The hours passed slowly. Morning had arrived before she sank to sleep. When she awoke, Germaine was kneeling at her bedside, holding her hand. "You?" murmured Odette. "Yes, dear sister. I am here to implore your forgiveness. I was harsh and cruel to you last night. Will you accept me for your companion? I have plenty of money, you know. Let us go far, far away, to some other country, where you and I can live alone together, in peace and content." Odette replied: "Oh, you brave, noble heart! I am guilty and miserable; but I am not degraded enough to accept your noble offer." She embraced her sister tenderly, humbly; then she rose. "Farewell, dear Germaine! I must go to my doom. Farewell." As she entered Germaine's sitting-room, she met her father, and saw by his agitation and the open letter in his hand, that he had heard from Paul. "You, here!" he exclaimed. "Miserable girl!" Odette had her hand on the door, but turned at these words.