To
him she poured out her heart. To him she revealed all that had passed
between her and the proprietor, and to him she committed the care of the
precious document of which she had possessed herself, and the little
note that accompanied it.
Mr. Balfour advised her to leave the city at once, and to go to some
place where Mr. Belcher would not be able to find her. He knew of no
place so fit for her in every respect as Number Nine, with his own
family and those most dear to her. Her boy and his father were there; it
was health's own home; and she could remain away as long as it might be
necessary. She would be wanted as a witness in a few months, at
furthest, in a suit which he believed would leave her persecutor in a
position where, forgetting others, he would be absorbed in the effort to
take care of himself.
Her determination was taken at once. Mr. Balfour accompanied her home,
and gave her all the necessary directions for her journey; and that
night she packed a single trunk in readiness for it. In the morning,
leaving her house to the care of trusty servants, she rode to the
station, while Mr. Belcher was lolling feverishly in his bed, and in an
hour was flying northward toward the place that was to be her summer
home, and into a region that was destined to be associated with her
future life, through changes and revolutions of which she did not dream.
Pages:
505
506
507
508
509
510
511
512
513
514
515
516
517
518
519
520
521
522
523
524
525
526
527
528
529