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She hadn’t thought to ask the dead ? she wondered Probably; the fact was that all her feelings had been otherwise engaged at the time--and still were Still, she closed her eyes for a moment and said a quick prayer for the repose of the soul of her unknown sitter

She opened her eyes to see that the light was fading She scraped the palette and began to clean her brushes and hands, returning slowly and reluctantly to the world outside her work

Jem would have been fed his supper and bathed already, but he refused to go to bed without being nursed and rocked to sleep Her brsts tingled slightly at the thought; they were pleasantly full, though they seldo solid food and thus decreased his voracious demands on her flesh

She’d nurse Jeo have her own belated supper in the kitchen She had not eaten with the others, wanting to take advantage of the evening light, and her sto sent scents of turps and linseed oil

And thenthen she would go upstairs to Roger Her lips tightened at the thought; she realized it, and forced herair out so that her lips vibrated with a flatulent noise like a motorboat

At this unfortunate h the door She blinked slightly, but had sufficiently good

"Oh, my dear, there you are! Do come into the parlor for a er to make your acquaintance"

"Oh--well, yes, of course," Brianna said, hat graciousness she could suo and change--"

Mrs Sherston waved away the s to show off her tame artist in costume

"No, no, don’t trouble about that We are quite si No one willrooh; I need to put Jehtly at that; she saw no reason why her slaves could not take care of the child altogether--but she had heard Brianna’s opinions on the subject before, and ise enough not to press the issue

Brianna’s parents were in the parlor with the Wilburs, who turned out to be a nice, elderly couple--what her mother would call a Darby and Joan They fussed appropriately over her appearance, insisted politely on seeing the portrait, expressed profound adhtly at the forenerally behaved with such kindness that she felt herself relaxing

She was just on the verge of e of a lull in the conversation to turn to her, sratulations upon your good fortune are in order, Mrs MacKenzie"

"Oh? Ahthank you," she said, uncertain what she was being congratulated for She glanced at her lanced at Jaranted your husband five thousand acres of land, in the back-country," he said His voice was even, almost colorless

"He has?" She felt momentarily bewildered "What--why?"

There was a brief stir of es and lances between the Sherstons and the Wilburs

"Colance of her own at Jamie

Brianna understood then; no one would be so uncouth as toopenly, but it was much too sensational a story not to have h society She realized suddenly that Mrs Sherston’s invitation to her parents and Roger had perhaps not beenthe hanged h on the Sherstons in aan unconventional portrait painted

"I do hope that your husband is ed the conversational gap "We were so sorry to hear of his injury"

Injury That was as circuined

"Yes, he’sas briefly as politeness allowed before turning back to her father

"Does Roger know about this? The land grant?"