"Concha!" He was deeply moved, and at the same time her words chilled him with subtle prophecy, sank into some unexplored depth of his consciousness, meeting response as subtle, filling him with impatience at the mortality of man. He glanced over his shoulder, then took her recklessly in his arms.
"Is it possible you doubt I will come back?" he demanded. "My faith?"
"No, not that. But such happiness seems to me too great for this life."
He remembered how often he had been close to death; he knew that during the greater part of the next two years he should see the glimmer of the scythe oftener yet. For a moment it seemed to him that he felt the dark waters rise in his soul, heard the jeers of the gods at the vanity of mortal will. But the blood ran strong and warm in his veins. He shook off the obsession, and smiled a little cynically, even as he kissed her.
"This is the hour for romance, my dear. In the years to come, when you are very prosaically my wife with a thousand duties, and grumbling at my exactions, your consolation will be the memory of some moment like this, when you were able to feel romantic and sad. I wish I could arrange for some such set of memories for myself, but I am unequal to your divine melancholy. When I can-not see you I am cross and sulky; and just now--I am, well--philosophically happy. Some day I shall be happier, but this is well enough. And I can har-bor no ugly presentiments. As I entered California I was elated with a sense of coming happiness, of future victories; and I prefer to dwell upon that, the more particularly as in a measure the prophetic hint has been fulfilled. So make the most of the present. I shall see you daily during this last precious fortnight, for I am determined this arrangement shall cease; and you must exorcise coquetry and abet me whenever there is a chance of a word alone."
She nodded, but she noted with a sigh that he said no more of sudden flight. She would never have consented to jeopardize the least of his inter-ests, but she fain would have been besought.
The experience she had had of the vehemence and fire in Rezanov made her long for his complete subjugation and the happiness it must bring to her-self. But as he smiled tenderly above her she saw that his practical brain had silenced the irresponsible demands of love, and although she did not with-draw from his arms she stiffened her head.
"I fancy I shall return home to-morrow," she said. "My mother tells me that she can live with-out me no longer, and that Father Abella has re-minded her that if I stay in the house of Elena Cas-tro I shall be as free from gossip as here. I infer that he has rated my two parents for making a martyr of me unnecessarily, and told them it was a duty to enliven my life as much as possible before I enter upon this long period of probation. The grat-ing of my room at Elena's is above a little strip of Garden, and faces the blank wall of the next house.
Sometimes--who knows?" She shrugged her shoulders and gave a gay little laugh, then stood very erect and moved past him to the door. She had recognized the shuffling step of Father Abella.
"Is supper ready, padre mio?" she asked sweetly.
"His excellency and I have talked so much that we are very hungry."
"There is no need to deceive me," said Father Abella dryly. "You are not the first lovers I have known, although I will admit you are by far the most interesting, and for that reason I have had the wickedness to abet you. But I fancy the good God will forgive me. Come quickly. They are scat-tered now, but will go to the refectory in a moment and miss you. Excellency, will you give your arm to Dona Ignacia and take the seat at the head of the table? Concha, my child, I am afraid you must console our good Don Weeliam. He is having a wretched quarter of an hour, but has loyally diverted the attention of your mother."
"That is the vocation of certain men," said Con-cha lightly.
