Hayes eyed him curiously, seemed puzzled by Joseph’s manner of speaking: then shook his head contemptuously. “It’s too transparent! You could claim to be anyone’s brother, and I’d never know the difference.”

“Let’s get at this another way,” I said. “Do you know Marie de Sabrevois?”

Hayes looked vacant and murmured, “I beg your pardon?”

“Marie de Sabrevois,” I repeated. “She wasn’t with the army when it marched out of camp, so she must be here, too. I think as things are, even she’d tell you that we’re what we claim to be. She’s here, isn’t she?”

Hayes stared. “Never heard of her.”

Joseph Phipps turned from us and went to the inner door. “I go find Ellen. She my sister.”

Hayes came suddenly to life.

“I’ll conduct this hospital without your assistance,” he said brusquely, and with that he pushed past Joseph Phipps and left us.

I have no doubt that during the moments that followed, my companions spoke to me. It may be, even, that I answered them; but what they said, and what I replied, I don’t know now, and I think I didn’t know then.

I know, though, that I stood there, swallowing, breathing heavily, and that all at once, into the soggy darkness that clouded my very soul, there strangely seemed to come, with a queer kind of brightness about it, the figure of Ellen Phipps.

The door opened and she stood there before me, no different than she had been at Iberville, or at Crown Point, or at Skenesboro—no different, except that her long, straight look at me carried the words to me as clearly as if her silver-clear voice had spoken them, “Yes, I am here. You knew, of course, I’d take care of your brother for you, didn’t you?”

She stepped forward and touched my arm with such a small and child-like hand that I wondered stupidly how it could be of use in a soldiers’ hospital.

“You mustn’t let Nathaniel stay here any longer. He’ll get well if you can take him away.”

The chief surgeon spoke sharply. “You can’t take away a deserter, Miss Phipps. You’ve proved yourself a good nurse, but that doesn’t give you the right to talk nonsense. I gave you permission to step out here and speak to your brother. Kindly do that and nothing else.”

Ellen ignored him and spoke to me. “If you don’t take Nathaniel away, I’m afraid he won’t get well.”

“Upon my word!” Hayes cried. “I never heard such nonsense! The ball merely passed from the sub-clavicular region around into the deltoid muscle, leaving a slight intercostal inflammation on the left side. Except that, the fellow’s as healthy as I am!”