nneth
Traynor was a temperate man. Is it no wonder you excited wonder and
talk? Then you were stupid under questioning and gave equivocal
answers. Your explanation to Parker about the diamonds was more than
unfortunate; it was idiotic. His suspicions were at once aroused. He
may yet give us trouble before we have time to get rid of the stones.
Finding the wife eluded you, you began to stay out late at night. You
caroused, you drank hard, you gambled--all of which follies your
brother never committed. In other words, you are a fool."

The miner pointed to the diamonds which still lay on the table.
Sulkily he asked:

"Is that all you wanted?"

Keralio put the gems away in his pocket, and pointed to the stacks of
newly printed counterfeit money that lay in stacks all over the floor.

"No, you can help me make up bundles of this stuff."

Handsome opened wide his eyes at sight of the crisp currency. Greedily
he exclaimed:

"Say--that's some money! Ain't they beauties?"

Keralio made an impatient gesture and, taking off his coat, made a
gesture to his companion to do likewise.

"Come--there's no time to talk. We must get rid of it all before
morning. For all I know the detectives may be watching the house now."

CHAPTER XVII

"I'm sure it was Mary," exclaimed Ray positively. "I never did like
the girl. She was sullen and vicious and would stop at nothing to get
even with us for discharging her."

"Perhaps you are right," said Helen, "although it is hard to believe
that a woman would do such a cruel thing to a mother. Just imagine how
worried I was all the way to Philadelphia, only to find when I got
there that no message had been sent, and Dorothy was perfectly well."

It was evening. The two women were sitting alone in the library on the
second floor, Ray busy at her trousseau, Helen helping her with a piece
of embroidery. The master of the house was absent, as usual. He had
not come home to dinner, having telephoned at the last minute that he
was detained at the club, a thing of such common occurrence since his
return from South Africa that Helen had come to accept it as a matter
of course. Indeed, things had come to such a pass that she rather
welcomed his absence. She preferred the sweet, amiable companionship
of her little sister to that of a man who had suddenly become exacting,
over-bearing and quarrelsome.

"Why don't you let Dorothy come home?" asked Ray. "Then you wouldn't