Lord Watergate informs Gerty that Mr. Darrell is already married. The two rush off to Mr. Darrell's together but fear they will be too late to stop the pair. Gertrude and Watergate have arrived just in time. Gertrude storms into Darrell's studio and convinces Phyllis to return home over the protests of Mr. Darrell. Lord Watergate denounces Darrell as a scoundrel. Phyllis faints, and Gerty and Lord Watergate rush home with her. Phyllis is very unwell after this. She has consumption, and a physician tells Gerty that Phyllis' death within months is certain. Phyllis dies within a few weeks. Lord Watergate pays Gertrude a visit a few weeks later with the news that there is a rumor that Frank has been seen alive. An emergency expedition finds Frank. By March, he has returned to London. Lucy and Frank are to be married immediately. Lucy will carry on the photography business after marriage. Gertrude's own future is uncertain, and she turns away Lord Watergate's advances in a tearful burst of emotion. Weeks later, Frank and Lucy are married and away on honeymoon, and Gerty is left alone in the studio. She painfully reflects on her uncertain future and playing out the part of a "strong-minded woman" into which she had been cast. She regrets that she turned down a future of love when she sent Lord Watergate away. However, there is suddenly a knock at the door; Lord Watergate has returned in spite of Gerty's rejection. Gerty tells Lord Watergate that she did not reject him because she did not value his love, but because she was afraid of embracing the happiness he offered. The novel's epilogue details the sisters' lives after marriage. Fanny and her husband remain happy together, but wish for children. Lucy and Frank have two children, but Lucy continues photography and specializes in children's portraits. The Watergates also have a child, and Gerty hopes he will inherit Lord Watergate's scientific mind. Major characters The Lorimer sisters Gertrude Lorimer: the novel's main character, and the most passionate of the sisters. She is 23 years old at the novel's opening and dreams of being a writer before putting it aside to make a living through photography. Gerty often takes charge of the situation, and is also regarded as the cleverest of the Lorimers. She speaks slightingly of her own plain looks. Lucy Lorimer: the most practical and rational of