For one thing, all were thankful during the ensuing weeks,--the Irish nobleman no longer came to Clayton Ranch, socially, or otherwise. He managed to keep himself in the background, and was seldom heard of save as he figured in some drunken brawl. But Jack Harding, who understood him best of all, and who knew the venom of his tongue, hounded him day by day. And there grew up in Lord Kelwin's mind a deepening fear and hate of Jack Harding. CHAPTER XX A WOMAN'S NO Miles and miles of desert country, sometimes a dull red, sometimes almost yellow of hue; over that a dome of bluest blue; between the two, air, crystalline, and full of light; and everywhere, scattered with reckless profusion, from Nature's lavish hand, the splendor of cactus blossoms. That is Arizona in June. And in this glory of color, one June day, walked Mrs. Clayton and Esther Bright, returning from a round of neighborhood calls. As they approached Clayton Ranch, they paused to admire the cactus blossoms. The giant cactus, towering above the house, was now covered with a profusion of exquisite blossoms of deepest pink. Red blossoms, pink blossoms, white blossoms, yellow blossoms everywhere, but guarded by thousands of thorns and spines. Esther stopped and picked some yellow blossoms from the prickly pear, only to find her fingers stinging from its minute spines. "It serves me right," she said, making a wry face. "I knew better, but I love the blossoms." "Good evening," called a cheery voice from the veranda. It was Mr. Clayton. "Kenneth called to see you, Miss Bright," he continued. "He would like you to go for a drive with him this evening." "Far?" she asked. "He didn't say." The two women entered the house, and soon returned refreshed. On the spacious veranda, the family gathered in the cool of the day, to feast their eyes on the gorgeous sunsets. "Do you know," said Esther, "it refreshes me whenever I _look_ at snow-capped Mt. Graham?" She looked far away to the south. "I shall miss it all," she said, pensively, "all the grandeur of scene, miss all of you here, miss my dear children, when I go home." "Oh, I hate to think of your going," said Edith, lifting the teacher's hand to her cheek. "I'm afraid you won't come back." "What's that I hear about not coming back?" asked Kenneth Hastings, who, at that moment, joined them. "I said I was afraid Miss Bright wouldn't come back," explained Edith. "I hope you are not thinking of going East soon," said Kenneth quietly. When she announced that she should, he protested vigorously. That evening, Esther rode with him through beautiful mountain scenes. The heavens were still colored with the soft afterglow, as they sped along the upland road. Later, the moon rose, flooding the earth with its weird, transfiguring light. Once more, Kenneth told Esther his past. He wanted her to know all there was to know, he said simply.