Yet she knew he would hear; surely he heard! Surely, surely!--for was he not already drifting toward her through the moonlight, nearer, here under the palms and orange-trees--here at her feet, holding her close, safe, strong, till, faint with the happiness of dreams come true, she slept, circled by his splendid arms.
And, while she lay there, lips scarce parted, sleeping quietly as a tired child, he sat his mud-splashed saddle, motionless under the moon, eyes never leaving her window for an instant, till at last the far dawn broke and the ghostly shadows fled away.
Then, in the pallid light, he slowly gathered bridle and rode back into the Southern forest, head heavy on his breast..