She thanked me with a glance of her dark eyes clouded with tears, but
as I turned hastily away to execute this errand, Mrs. Brennan laid
restraining hand upon my arm.

"Captain Wayne," she said with much seriousness, "you are very
unselfish, but you must not go until your own wounds have been attended
to; they may be far more serious than you apprehend."

"My wounds?" I almost laughed at the gravity of her face, for although
exhausted, I was unconscious of any injury. "They must be trivial
indeed, for I was not even aware I had any."

"But you have!" she insisted, her eyes full upon me. "Your hair is
fairly clotted with blood, while your shoulder is torn and bruised
until it is horrible to look upon."

As I gazed at her, surprised by the anxiety she so openly displayed, I
chanced to behold myself reflected within a large mirror directly
across the room. One glance was sufficient to convince me her words
were fully justified. My remains of uniform literally clung to me in
rags, my bare shoulder looked a contused mass of battered flesh, my
hair was matted, and my face blackened by powder stains and streaked
with blood.

"I certainly do appear disreputable enough," I admitted; "but I can
assure you it is nothing sufficiently serious to require immediate
attention. Indeed a little water is probably all I need. Besides, why
should I care--was it not all received for your sake?"

I spoke the pronoun so strongly she could not well ignore my obvious