if Bent or Mrs. Bent surprised her in Jervis's arms.
A few moments ago she would hardly have cared.

"Let's go into the Cathedral now," she said, and,
to break the cruelty of her silent refusal of what he
asked, she held out her hand. To her surprise, and
yes, her disappointment, he did not seem to see it.
Instead, he stepped forward to the door, and turning
the weighty iron handle, pushed it widely open.

Together, side by side, they passed through into the
great, still, peaceful place, and with a delicious feeling
of joy they saw that they were alone -- that Mrs. Bent,
having done her duty in unbolting the great door, had
slipt out of a side door, and gone back to her cottage,
behind the Cathedral.

Rose led the way into the nave; there she knelt
down, and Jervis Blake knelt down by her, and this
time, when she put out her hand, he took it in his
and clasped it closely.

Rose tried to collect her thoughts. She even tried
to pray. But she could only feel, -- she could not utter
the supplications which filled her troubled heart. And
yet she felt as though they two were encompassed by
holy presences, by happy spirits, who understood and
sympathised in her mingled joy and grief.

If Jervis came back, if he and she both lived till
the end of the War, it was here that their marriage
would take place. But the girl had a strange presentiment
that they two would never stand over
there, where so many brides and bridegrooms had stood
together, even within her short memory. It was not
that she felt Jervis was going to be killed -- she was
mercifully spared those dread imaginings which were
to come on her later. But just now, for these few

[[118]]

p117 _ -chap- _ toc-1 _ p118w _ toc-2 _ +chap+ _ p119

v?