To talk to him aloud, also kept her thoughts together, helped her to feel the fact of the things she contemplated, as well as the reality of his presence.
Now the byre was just on the other side of the turf wall against which was the head of Gibbie's bed, and through the wall Gibbie had heard her voice, with that something in the tone of it which let him understand she was not talking to Crummie, but to Crummie's maker; and it was therefore he had got up and gone after her.

For there was no reason, so far as he knew or imagined, why he should not hear, as so many times before, what she was saying to the Master.
He supposed that as she could not well speak to him in the presence of a man like Angus, she had gone out to the byre to have her talk with him there.

He crawled to the end of the cottage so silently that she heard no sound of his approach.

He would not go into the byre, for that might disturb her, for she would have to look up to know that it was only Gibbie; he would listen at the door.

He found it wide open, and peeping in, saw Crummie chewing away, and Janet on her knees with her forehead leaning against the cow and her hands thrown up over her shoulder.