Thornton the Witness

     "A police inspector came and taxed me with having been the companion of the young man, whose push or blow had occasioned Leonards' death; that was a false accusation, you know, but we had not heard that Fred had sailed, he might still be in London and liable to be arrested on this false charge, and his identity with the Lieutenant Hale, accused of causing mutiny, discovered, he might be shot; all this flashed through my mind, and I said it was not me. I was not at the railway station that night. I knew nothing about it. I had no conscience or thought but to save Fredrick."
     "I say it was right. I should have done the same. You forget yourself in thought for another. I hope I should have done the same."
     "No, you would not. It was wrong, disobedient, faithless. At that very time Fred was safely out of England, and in my blindness I forgot that there was another witness who could testify to my being there."
     "Who?"
     "Mr. Thornton."

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Elizabeth Gaskell's North and South, ch. 46 pg. 387

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

     And the truth comes out. I waited the whole book through for this moment to happen. Oh how I wanted Mr. Bell to tell Thornton the truth about Margaret. I wanted him to know that Fred was her brother. That she had lied in loyalty to her family, not been being disrespectful and having an affair. Oh how I wanted his broken lover's heart to be mended. This honest confession between the two meant so much for me, and when Bell wouldn't let her speak at first, I was like one of those people watching a movie and shouting at the characters to do a certain thing, only in this case, it was a book character. That's how into the book I was.
     Spoilers. The fact that Mr. Bell is of no help and never tells Thornton kills me! Some friend. What a jerk. This old guy wants to marry the heroine and here he has a chance to save her butt and he doesn't do anything about it. AH!!! Man books tear your heart out.
    The irony though that of all the people to see, Thornton was the witness. AH!! The agony!