Nevertheless , Reeves felt somehow that Mrs. Fraser did not like her husband 's niece . He often heard her scolding or nagging Helen at her work , and noticed that the latter never answered back . But once , after Mrs. Angus 's tongue had been especially bitter , he met the girl hurrying along the hall from the kitchen with her eyes full of tears . Reeves felt as if someone had struck him a blow . He went to Angus and his wife that afternoon . He wished to paint a shore picture , he said , and wanted a model . Would they allow Miss Fraser to pose for him ? He would pay liberally for her time . Angus and his wife had no objection . They would pocket the money , and Helen could be spared a spell every day as well as not . Reeves told Helen of his plan himself , meeting her in the evening as she was bringing the cows home from the low shore pastures beyond the marsh . He was surprised at the sudden illumination of her face . It almost transfigured her from a plain , sulky-looking girl into a beautiful woman . But the glow passed quickly . She assented to his plan quietly , almost lifelessly . He walked home with her behind the cows and talked of the sunset and the mysterious beauty of the bay and the purple splendour of the distant coasts . She listened in silence . Only once , when he spoke of the distant murmur of the open sea , she lifted her head and looked at him . `` What does it say to you ? '' she asked .
`` It speaks XXXXX eternity .
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