CHAPTER XXXIV.

THE REVELATION OF A SECRET.

The old engineer fell into a sleep or a stupor in a short time, and little Nell, exhausted, was taken to the bed in Frank’s room. Merry carried her in his arms.

“Now you must sleep and rest, dear little girl,” said Frank, as he placed her gently on the bed.

“I am afraid I can’t.”

“Why not?”

“Oh, I shall think, think, think; and you know it is hard to sleep when you are thinking.”

“You need the rest, Nellie. The excitement to-night might bring on a relapse and make you ill again. You do not want to be ill any longer.”

“No! no!”

“Then keep still and count yourself to sleep. You can do it if you try.”

“If uncle wakes up and calls for me----”

“You shall know it. But I think he will sleep straight through till morning. He has been drinking heavily since he was discharged to-day, and that was why he fell downstairs.”

“I know, for I could smell his breath. Oh, don’t you suppose we may be able to get him to sign the pledge? Perhaps we can save him and make a good man of him.”

“You may be able to do it, Nellie; but it is not possible for me to do anything. I have tried my best with him, and it has been a failure.”

“I will try. Somehow I am not afraid of him the way I was. He seems so ill and lonely in the world. It must be terrible to be all alone in the world, with no one to work for, and no one to care about.”

“Yes,” said Frank, a touch of sadness coming to his handsome face; “I realized it, for I was all alone in the world till we met. I have had more courage since.”

“But--some time--we must be separated.”

Something in the way she said the words smote Frank with a sensation of pain. He had not thought of that.

“I suppose so,” he said, slowly; “it always happens so. Our early friendships are broken, and we are separated from those without whom we often fancied we could not exist. In time we form other attachments, which, in turn, may be broken.”

“Oh, but I know--I know----”

“What is it that you know, dear little girl?”

“I know we can never care for anyone as we care for you. I know it, Frank!”

She reached up her slender arms as he bent down to kiss her, clasping them about his neck and straining him close to her with all her childish strength. He was surprised, for this was quite unlike her; she usually demonstrated her affection by a gentle touch or a whispered word.

“You are overwrought, Nellie,” he said, gently. “Your nerves are all unstrung. It is too bad that that man followed Jack here to-night.”

“No; I am glad of it,” she declared, with her eyes upturned to his face, as if she were trying to pierce the black veil between them. “I do not think it will hurt me, and I shall have a chance to try to save him from certain ruin. It is his last chance. If I fail----”

“If you fail, dear little girl, an angel from heaven could not save him!”

Her lips quivered, and then a slow smile came and lingered on her pale face.

“You do care for me, don’t you, Frank?” she eagerly asked.

“Care for you? Nellie, I love you as if you were my own--sister.”

“And you never had a sister?”

“No.”

“You were the only child?”

“Yes.”

“How lonely it must have been! Just think what if I had not Jack. I love him, and he loves me. But I love you just as much, dear Frank.”

She reached up her hands and placed them on either side of his face, holding them there.

“There,” she softly breathed, “now I know I am looking straight at you, and I fancy I can see you. You are so manly and so noble! Your eyes are dark brown, and so is your hair. Your mouth is tender, but firm, without a hard line about it. You have a high, wide forehead, which is fair and unlined. You are young, and you will always remain young, for your heart will not let you grow old.”

“Why, Nellie, how do you know my eyes are brown--my hair is brown?”

“Ah-a!” she laughed. “A little bird told me. And I have dreamed of you. I saw you in my dream, and I am sure I saw you as you really are. When I can really see again, I shall know you without having you pointed out to me.”

He began to realize how much she loved him--how much time she had spent thinking and dreaming of him.

Still he regarded her as a mere child, nothing more.

“I know how you learned so much,” he laughed. “Jack told you.”

“Yes,” she confessed; “I have had him describe you to me many times.”

“Jack is a good boy.”

“He has always been good to me, and I love him; but, oh, Frank! it does not seem that I care for--anybody--else--as much as--I care--for you!”

She seemed frightened when she had said this, and she half sat up, clasping an arm about his neck.

“Is it wrong?” she whispered--“is it wrong for me to care more for you than I do for Jack? He is my own brother. It does not seem that I could love him more than I do, and yet, somehow, I seem to care more for you, Frank, than I do for Jack. Oh! I am afraid it is wrong. I am afraid I am a wicked girl!”

“There! there!” he exclaimed, smoothing back her hair and patting her head. “Don’t get so excited over it, Nellie. You simply fancy now that you care more for me--that’s all.”

She shook her head, leaning away back as she did so.

“No! no! no!” she whispered. “It is not fancy. I did not think I could care more for anybody than I did for Jack; but, this very day, the truth came to me, and I knew I loved you more. I don’t know what you will think of me for telling you all this. I can’t help it, Frank! I must tell somebody, and I can’t tell Jack. I couldn’t keep the secret longer. I thought I would bury it deep in my heart, and never, never let anybody know; but I could not keep it. If there had been some one else for me to tell, I should not have told you; but there was no one to whom I could talk about you, save Jack, and I could not tell him my secret. He must not know it. It would break his heart.”

Frank knew not what to say. For the first time he was confused.

“Lie down and sleep, Nellie,” he finally murmured. “I know your nerves are unstrung, for you are trembling all over.”

“It is because I am happy,” she declared, and the color came to her face that had been so pale. “I am happy because I told you my secret. You must keep it for me. It will be a secret between us. Oh, I have not had a secret for so long, and it is just lovely to have one now!”

Again she appeared like a mere child, and the troubled look disappeared from Frank Merriwell’s face.

“Yes,” he returned; “if you say so, it shall be our secret, dear little girl. But you must not care for me more than you do for your brother.”

“Mustn’t I?”

“No.”

“Is it wrong?”

“I fear it is.”

She dropped back on the pillow, covering her face with her hands, and lay there quietly. He bent over and spoke some gentle words to her.

“Frank!” she breathed.

“Yes, little one. What is it?”

“What was your pet name for Elsie?”

“My pet name? Why, sometimes I called her Sweetheart.”

“Frank!”

“Yes, Nellie.”

“Just once--for to-night--just once--won’t you call me--that?”

Frank Merriwell started and turned pale, and, for the first time, he fully realized how much the blind girl cared for him.

“Oh, is it wrong for you to call me that--just once?” she asked. “Won’t you be true to Elsie just the same? If it is wrong, don’t do it, Frank. But I’ll never ask it again--I’ll never expect it. Only once, and I know Elsie would forgive you if she knew.”

Remarkable were the emotions which thrilled Frank’s heart, for he understood now what it all meant. Never again could he look on little Nell as a mere child, and he was sorry.

She knew he was hesitating, and she feared he would refuse. She turned away, and it was wonderful how the blood rushed to her face and neck.

Frank bent over her.

“Only once!” he said to himself. “Elsie would not mind.”

Then, with infinite tenderness, he murmured:

“Sweetheart!”

She thrilled all over, and something like a sob came from behind the hands that were again clasped over her face.

He waited, unable to say another word. After a little time she put out one hand and he took it with his own.

“Thank you, Frank,” she said, with as much calmness as she could command. “It was foolish of me, and I am ashamed; but you were kind, and I’ll not forget. You’ll never see me this way again--never! I promise you that.”

He was silent.

“Go to bed and dream of Elsie,” she softly said. “Some day you and Elsie will be so happy together! I will pray for her, Frank--and for you! Good-night!”

“Good-night.”

He rose and started from the room. At the door he paused and looked back. She was lying as he had left her, with her hands over her face. He went out and closed the door.

Then, without making a sound, she wept herself to sleep.