He has since married and is , I understand , very happy . Not as happy as I am , of course ; that is impossible , because there is only one Betty in the world , and she is my wife . XII . IN HER SELFLESS MOOD The raw wind of an early May evening was puffing in and out the curtains of the room where Naomi Holland lay dying . The air was moist and chill , but the sick woman would not have the window closed . `` I ca n't get my breath if you shut everything up so tight , '' she said . `` Whatever comes , I ai n't going to be smothered to death , Car ` line Holland . '' Outside of the window grew a cherry tree , powdered with moist buds with the promise of blossoms she would not live to see . Between its boughs she saw a crystal cup of sky over hills that were growing dim and purple . The outside air was full of sweet , wholesome springtime sounds that drifted in fitfully . There were voices and whistles in the barnyard , and now and then faint laughter . A bird alighted for a moment on a cherry bough , and twittered restlessly . Naomi knew that white mists were hovering in the silent hollows , that the maple at the gate wore a misty blossom red , and that violet stars were shining bluely on the brooklands . The room was a small , plain one . The floor was bare , save for a couple of braided rugs , the plaster discolored , the walls dingy and glaring . There had never been much beauty in Naomi Holland 's environment , and , now that she was dying , there was even less . At the open window a boy of about ten years was leaning out over the sill and whistling . He was tall for his age , and beautiful -- the hair a rich auburn with a glistening curl in it , skin very white and warm-tinted , eyes small and of a greenish blue , with dilated pupils and long lashes . He had a weak chin , and a full , sullen mouth . The bed was in the corner farthest from the window ; on it the sick woman , in spite of the pain that was her portion continually , was lying as quiet and motionless as she had done ever since she had lain down upon it for the last time .
Naomi Holland never complained ; when the agony was at its worst , she shut her teeth more firmly over her bloodless lip , and her great black eyes glared XXXXX the blank wall before in a way that gave her attendants what they called `` the creeps , '' but no word or moan escaped her .
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