“Then indeed we are lost!” cried the queen, in the fullness of a broken heart.
At this moment the door opened and the young Henrietta appeared; then the queen, with that wonderful strength which is the privilege of parents, repressed her tears and motioned to De Winter to change the subject.
But that act of self-control, effective as it was, did not escape the eyes of the young princess. She stopped on the threshold, breathed a sigh, and addressing the queen:
“Why, then, do you always weep, mother, when I am away from you?” she said.
The queen smiled, but instead of answering:
“See, De Winter,” she said, “I have at least gained one thing in being only half a queen; and that is that my children call me