And as for the son she must live with the rest of her life, her duty there was to be a good wife, to bear with his faults, to strive always to help him by kindness, patience, loyalty, and such affection as was possible to her.

Hate had to be reckoned with, and hate, she knew, had no place in a good woman's heart.
It must be expelled, if that were humanly possible.

All this was hard, would grow harder, but she accepted it, and knew her mind.
Her soul was her own, unchangeable through any adversity.

She could be with that alone always, aloof from the petty cares and troubles common to people.

Wade's words had thrilled her with their secret, with their limitless hope of an unknown world of thought and feeling.