"You have been so kind, so affectionate to me, Estelle! To-morrow you
will know--perhaps. I will leave you a letter. I am going away. If you
forget me--well, that is right; if you do not forget me, do not think
bad of--of poor Nina!"
"I don't know what you mean, Nina," said Estelle, who was herself
whimpering by this time; "but I won't let you go away. No, I will not.
You do not know what you say. It is madness--to-morrow morning you will
reflect--to-morrow morning you will tell me, and rely on me as a
friend."
"Yes, to-morrow morning all will be right, Estelle," Nina said, again
kissing the hand that she clung to. "Pardon me that I have kept you
up--and disturbed you. Go away to your bed, Estelle--to-morrow morning
all will be right!"
Very reluctantly Estelle was at length persuaded to leave; and as she
left she turned off the gas in the sitting-room. A few minutes
thereafter Nina, still dressed as she had come home from the theatre,
entered the room, re-lit the gas, and noiselessly proceeded to clear a
portion of the table, on which she placed writing materials. Then she
went into her bedroom and fetched a little drawer in which she kept her
valuables; and the first thing she did was to take out an old-fashioned
gold ring she had brought with her from Naples.
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