"Cheer up, my boy, it might have been worse--he is only stunned, and leg
broken. I hope he will pull round again."

And then Dudley burst into a passionate fit of tears, with relief at the
doctor's words.




IX


MAKING HIS WILL

It was long before the cousins met; Roy's delicate constitution had
received such a shock that his condition for some time was a cause of
grave anxiety. His leg did not heal, and then the terrible word was
whispered through the house "amputation"!

It was a lovely evening in September when after a long talk with the
doctor in the library Miss Bertram came out, her usually determined face
quivering with emotion.

"I will tell him to-night, Doctor Grant, and we shall be ready for you
to-morrow afternoon at three."

She went upstairs, and Dudley with scared eyes having heard her speech
now crept out of the house after the doctor.

"Look here, Doctor Grant," he said, confronting him with an almost