ast amount of
information that people flatter themselves is secret."

Percival looked at him and grinned. The girl turned slowly from her
amused survey of Dick to study Ellery's face, which showed his
discomfort in its flush. If a girl so gentle could feel scorn, Ellery
would have thought he detected a touch of it. Certainly there was a hint
of grieved surprise as she spoke, with her eyes still fixed on Norris.

"I'm very sorry, Dick," she said humbly. "I didn't mean to be prying.
I've grown so used to asking you about everything. Mr. Norris ought to
get a better mask."

She laughed lightly, but Ellery's face grew hotter. He wondered if she
suspected him of some underhand trickery, and Dick realized it, yet kept
amused silence. For an instant he hated Dick, and felt a wild impulse to
defend himself; but second thoughts came quickly. She loved Dick and was
therefore slow to impute evil to him. Dick loved her, and if he had for
once played the petty knave, it was the place of a friend to protect her
against that knowledge. That had been the instinctive reason for Norris'
words, and he was not going back on them now. Yet Ellery's brain whirled
to think how swiftly and by what simple means he might have toppled her
slowly-ripening friendship into the mire. Ellery's imagination piled
superlatives on every act and expression of his lady. If she looked
light disapproval, it was worse than another's scorn. And Dick--for
whom he had thrown away the thing he most valued in the world--Dick
exclaimed gaily:

"Don't be suspicious, Madeline. Are all secrets disgraceful? Can't you
trust your old friends?"

"Of course I'm not suspicious," she answered indignantly. "I only mean
to beg your pardon, Dick, and I assure you again that I'm not curious,
even. I asked this question as I have asked a thousand others, and that
would have been the end of it----except for Mr. Norris' face."

She smiled as she turned away, and Dick lifted his eyebrows and shrugged
his shoulders as much as to say, "What difference does it make, anyway?
What difference!" Dick didn't care whether she despised Ellery or
not--he didn't care enough to speak an honorable word of explanation.

Mrs. Lenox came up crying, "Come, my triple alliance, Frank has carried
Miss Quincy off to the billiard-room to give her a lesson. Let us go,
too, to see that they do not get into mischief."

Dick hurried away to usurp Mr. Lenox's place, Madeline tucked her arm
through that