She came up to
Bill, and he saw that her face wore an anxious look. He gazed at
her with a curious feeling that it was a very long time since he
had seen her last.
'Where have you been?' she said, her voice troubled. 'I couldn't
think what had become of you.'
'I went for a walk.'
'But you've been gone hours and hours.'
'I went to a place called Morrisville.'
'Morrisville!' Elizabeth's eyes opened wide. 'Have you walked
twenty miles?'
'Why, I--I believe I have.'
It was the first time he had been really conscious of it.
Elizabeth looked at him in consternation. Perhaps it was the
association in her mind of unexpected walks with the newly-born
activities of the repentant Nutty that gave her the feeling that
there must be some mental upheaval on a large scale at the back of
this sudden ebullition of long-distance pedestrianism. She
remembered that the thought had come to her once or twice during
the past week that all was not well with her visitor, and that he
had seemed downcast and out of spirits.
She hesitated.
'Is anything the matter, Mr Chalmers?'
'No,' said Bill, decidedly. He would have found a difficulty in
making that answer with any ring of conviction earlier in the day,
but now it was different. There was nothing whatever the matter
with him now.
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