"You were always wise, now wiser than ever before," said Dolores, stepping closer to him and laying her disengaged hand upon his arm. But Evaña shrank from her as though this mute caress were a pain to him, and they walked on side by side until they emerged from between the rows of poplars out upon the open plain, and rejoined the others who there awaited them. "Mamma," said Dolores, "you promised me that I should see the sunset, but there will be no sunset for us to look on to-night." Far away on the western horizon there lay a bank of dull grey clouds, behind which the sun had already sunk. From behind these clouds sprang diverging rays of orange and gold, stretching up over the grey sky almost to the zenith, and tinging all objects upon which they shone with the reflection of their brilliance. "No, we shall not see the sunset," said Gordon. "That cloud is a veil which hides him from us, but if it were not for that cloud we could not look steadily upon the western sky, the sun would dazzle our eyes, and we should see nothing. Is not this that we can look upon more beautiful than any sunset?" "It is the sunset all the same," said Dolores, "only that the sun is wanting." "The sun has been kind enough to hide himself behind that cloud for your sake, Lola," said her brother, "so that without dazzling your eyes you may see how he can paint the sky. In the most beautiful sunsets of summer you never saw anything so beautiful as this." "No, I never did," said Dolores. Just then the servant of Don Carlos Evaña rode up to them leading a saddled horse by the rein. "Don Carlos! your horse?" said Doña Constancia. "Yes, Señora," replied Evaña; "I have urgent business outside, and shall leave as soon as you turn back to the quinta." All except Dolores looked at him in surprise. "Why not remain till to-morrow?" said Marcelino. "I have a fancy to gallop through the night," said Evaña. "The sooner you go the sooner you will be back," said Doña Constancia. "Look, Don Carlos," said Dolores, "there is something for you to see before you go. Was there ever anything more beautiful than this?" The grey cloud had lifted itself, disclosing one bright spot of fire on the far horizon, the last gleam of the departing day. As the cloud rose it seemed to dissipate itself, mingling its grey tones with the golden radiance of the setting sun, tempering the brilliance of those broad bands of glory which stretched over the western sky, melting them as it rose over them, absorbing them into itself, then with them vanishing away. Then the bright spot of fire sank down out of sight, and straightway the place so lately filled by the grey cloud became one mass of brilliant light. Two broad bands of rich vermilion, with one band of yellow gold between them, parallel to the horizon, hung like a gorgeous canopy over the resting-place of the sun.