San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1890-11-10
NOT PROVEN;
ESTHER HILLS SECRET.
BY GEoRGIANA NJ. CRAIK.
OR

cret!" and though (mercifully for her)
she only thought of this as a possible
solution of his coming-though She did
not really believe in it as the true solu-
ton, yet it was difficult for her ever
after this to see him without her fears
being reused afresh, and her suspicion
tOrturing her.
was true, when he met her, there was
nothing, any more than there had ever
been, to make her suspicious of him. He
her, and he was courteous to her in the
same way and degree still. He was a
thoughtful and often a silent man, and
it was likely enough that he might come
to the house, and spend ar hour or two
in the same o with her, and yet
hardly speak a dozen words to her, but
still, whenever he did speak, the tone
in which he addressed her did some
thing rather to reasSure than to alarm
her.
Nor did it have this effect upon her
without reason, for, in fact, as he watch
ed her, whatever suspicious he had
about her at her first going to Wrex-
ham died more and more away. He
used to think to himself indeed still
''She was wrong to take up her abode
in their house without telling her story
to them" but though he continued to
say this he was merciful enough to feel
that it might be possible to excuse and
forgive this silence in her; and, for the
rest, he said to himself with more and
more confidence after each time he saw
her-''She has no Interior object; she is
not trying to ingratiate herself with
them; she is acting honestly and truly
by them"
1t was with no little sense of relief
that he began to think this, for the
young mar was keenly and painfully
alive to the fact that, if harm should
come from Mrs. HillS intimacy at
him: that he should be obliged to con-
fess to himself that he had chosen to
screen her rather than to warn them;
that he had kept her secret when by
keeping it he left them open to the risk
of a danger which (even though he act
ed thus) he could not calmly think of.
But this danger was only in his mind a
remote, far-fetched possibility; whereas
to tell her secret would be to stab hertz
the heart.
'IShe has come here for shelter" he
said to himself, land l cannot hunt her
from her refuge. At least | cannot till
l doubt her, and | do not doubt her
yet" And then. as he watched her,
with eyes that his anxiety had made
tolerably keen, he doubted her less and
less. She always seemed the same to
him when he saw heT,-always quiet,
honest, straightforward. with some
thing almost irresiStibly' touching in
her sad young eyes. He used to look
into them and think so. They had lost
the stony look that they had six months
ago, and had grown very beautiful, ina
patient pathetic way. The whole face,
indeed, had grown more beautiful than
it had been six months ago; the painful
lines about the mouth had got softened,
and she often smiled now, with a smile
that Gabrielle used to say was like
music"
Once when he left the house, George
Gilbert said to himself could almost
stake my life upon it that woman is not
bad" And, though he seldom said so
much as this, yet he found himself
coming continually more and more to
believe in her, and to get his uneasi-
ness about her set to rest. IF she is
clever, of course it is quite possible that
she may be taking us all in" he some
times indeed thought, but as time went
on his faith in her, cautious as he was,
became stronger a good deal than his
doubt.
He came to the house during these
weeks as Gabrielle had said, consider
ably oftener than he had formerly done,
and yet he did not come very often,
for-from the same motive that had
made him from the first hold himself
aloof from the DunStans,-he was still
slow to take advantage of the hospital
ity that was offered him so warmly.
II do not know that l shall learn any
thing more by continuing to watch her."
he began to say to himself after a time;
''either she is what she seems to be, or
she is clever to see that l suspect her,
and to know how to battle me-"
And then when he said this, he said
too that he would fall back again by de-
grees into his old habit of only going
to the Dunstans' rarely; but yet, though
he thought he would do this, he did
not fall again into that old habit.
He had got into a new groove, and
somehow the new groove had become
pleasant to walk in. His footsteps had
grown into the trick of turning to
WreXham very naturally. He used to
come sometimes in the afternoon, and
stay to dinner; but more often he would
drop in merely in the evening, and take
his chance of finding Mr.. Dunstan at
home. He never came in at all if Mr..
Dunstan was not at home He was
wholly looked upon as Mr.. Dunstan's
visitor,-wholly, at least. by his host
himself, and by Aunt Susan. Gabrielle,
perhaps, scarcely looked upon him alto
gether in that light,-but then Gabrielle
had an invincible instinct for meddling,
and thinking she had a right to NEEDLE,
with what did not concern her, and as
Stunning a share to herself in business