No tears, no
lamentations, for she was her mother's daughter, and inherited the
pride that can bear heavy burdens, if they are borne unseen.
"Tell me what I must do, and I will do it," she said, with the quiet
despair of one who submits to the inevitable, but will not complain.
When Christie with difficulty told her that she should give up her
lover, Bella bowed her head, and for a moment could not speak, then
lifted it as if defying her own weakness, and spoke out bravely:
"It shall be done, for it is right. It is very hard for me, because
I love him; he will not suffer much, for he can love again. I should
be glad of that, and I'll try to wish it for his sake. He is young,
and if, as Harry says, he cares more for my fortune than myself, so
much the better. What next, Christie?"
Amazed and touched at the courage of the creature she had fancied a
sort of lovely butterfly to be crushed by a single blow, Christie
took heart, and, instead of soothing sympathy, gave her the solace
best fitted for strong natures, something to do for others. What
inspired her, Christie never knew; perhaps it was the year of
self-denying service she had rendered for pity's sake; such devotion
is its own reward, and now, in herself, she discovered unsuspected
powers.
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