never inconvenienced, which shares all comforts and no troubles.
She sat down in a chair, overcome with excitement and hesitating
what to do. In a moment she noticed that the door opening on the
foot of the staircase stood ajar. It led to his room. Not a sound
reached her from above. She summoned all her self-control, mounted
the stairway, and entered.

The two negro women were standing inside with their backs to the
door. On one side of the bed sat David's mother, on the other his
father. Both were looking at David. He lay in the middle of the
bed, his eyes fixed restlessly on the door. As soon as he saw her,
he lifted himself with an effort and stretched out his arms and
shook them at her with hoarse little cries. "Oh! oh! oh! oh!"

The next moment he locked his arms about her.

"Oh, it has been so long!" he said, drawing her close, "so long!"

"Ah, why did you not send for me? I have waited and waited."

He released her and fell back upon the pillows; then with a slight
gesture he said to his father and mother:--

"Will you leave us alone?"

When they had gone out, he took one of her hands and pressed it
against his cheek and lay looking at her piteously.

Gabriella saw the change in him: his anxious expression, his cheeks
flushed with a red spot, his restlessness, his hand burning. She