aid casually:

"I'm going away for three or four weeks."

"Where to?" he asked sharply, suddenly rousing from his abstraction.

"I'm going on a yachting trip with Mary Louise and Colonel Hathaway.
We're to be the guests of a Mr. Morrison and his wife, who own the
yacht."

"Morrison? Morrison?" he repeated suspiciously. Then, as if relieved:
"I don't know any Morrisons."

"Nor do I. They are old friends of the Hathaways and the Conants,
however."

"Well, you can't go. It's nonsense."

"Why?"

"Yachts are dangerous. I don't want you drowned."

"I'd be as safe on a yacht as I would be in this house," she declared.
"Do you think I intend to take any chances with my life? Please
remember that when I'm eighteen I shall have a fortune and be able to
lead an independent life--a pleasant life--a life in sharp contrast to
this one. Therefore, I'm going to live to enjoy my money."

He gave her a shrewd look of approval. The argument seemed to appeal to
him. It quieted, to an extent, his fears for her safety.

"Anyhow," said Alora bluntly, "I'm going, and I dare you to stop me."

He was silent a while, considering the proposition. Just now he would
be busy at the aviation field and in Colonel Hathaway's charge the girl
was likely to be quite safe. He was inclined to relax his vigilance
over his precious daughter, on this occasion.

"How long do the Hathaways expect to be away?" he inquired.

"Mary Louise says we will surely be home three weeks from the day we
leave."

"Surely?"

"Without fail."

"H-m-m. It's a risk. Something might delay you. Do you know what would
happen if you left me for sixty days or more?"

"Of course I do. That will of my mother's states that if at any time my
devoted father develops any neglect of me, or lack of interest in his
darling daughter, such as allowing me to become separated from him for
longer than sixty days at one time, the court has the privilege, at its
option, of deposing him as administrator of my estate and appointing
another guardian. The other guardian, however, is to be paid a salary
and the income, in that case, is to accrue to the benefit of my
estate."

"How did you learn all that?" he demanded.

"You left a copy of the will lying around, and I read it and made a
copy of it for myself. I now know my mother's will by heart. She
suggests that if we must live together, 'in loving companionship,' you
will probably have me educated by tutors, at home, and her obj