Em's Husband

When Em arrives by boat with old 'Sias at a secluded island estate, she finds a paradise of flowers, fountains, white marble, and quiet spiritual intensity. On the terraces, a blind preacher holds a congregation spellbound with a sermon on Faith, Love, and Works, urging practical goodness toward all living things, and Em feels his uncanny power as if he can read her soul. Inside the house, beauty turns mysterious: a blue-and-white saloon holds a veiled portrait so like the moonlit "White Spirit" Em has seen that it seems to be her own face, hinting at hidden kinship and uncanny doubles. Old 'Sias hurries her away before his stern wife, Sereny, discovers them, but Em's blue scarf wins Sereny's favor and turns tension into warmth. Back at the manor, Em recounts her morning as the Palmer family settles into the Wilderness, just as the brisk estate agent Mr. Carmichael arrives with instructions and questions about strange happenings in the old house. Soon Em meets the benefactress who has secured the family's prosperity and learns, in a moving revelation, that she is Emolyn Wyndeworth herself, the woman behind the portrait, the rumors, and the long-buried sorrow. This edition has been fully restored with modern typesetting, custom cover design.