prophesied. He
displayed all the proper symptoms of mourning and grief as far as his
clothing and stationery went. After a brief period of retirement
from the world, during which he chattered with fear when he wrapped
Trudy's gay little possessions in bundles and gave them away, he
emerged in the satisfactory role of a young widower on the loose
who feels that "Perhaps it was all for the best; an idyl of youth,
y'know; someone quite out of my sphere," and was welcomed by the
old set enthusiastically.

Beatrice particularly saw to it that he was petted and properly cared
for regarding invitations and dainties to eat and drink. In this new
role, with a well-established business and no shrewd red-haired wife
to point out his meannesses and try to make him go fifty-fifty with
the profits, Gay felt at peace with all the world.

He did not even miss Trudy's work after a little. The only thing that
bothered him was an occasional memory of the white, thin face and
those limp, red curls, the hacking cough and the way her big eyes had
stared at him that last night. He hated anything connected with
suffering of any kind, let alone death itself.

Before long Gay found himself back at the club and running a neat shop
on a prominent corner with deaf mutes from charity institutions
ensconced in the back rooms to do the work. Memories of Trudy and of
their life together became as remote as the menu of a dinner eaten
twelve months past.

He had her ring set over for himself, Mary never having mentioned the
matter. In fact, he avoided Mary as he avoided Steve, for it was Mary
who had spent the last moments with Trudy, and whatever was said
remained a most uncomfortable mystery, to Gay's way of thinking. She
had remained at the apartment to help Gay through his sorrow, looking
at him with brief scorn as he stammered inane thanks, scantily
concealing his impatience to sample a basket of wine just sent in.

As Easter Sunday came slipping into the calendar, with Mary and Luke
sightseeing in New York in plebeian fashion and not ashamed of it,
there came a great though not unexpected crash in Steve O'Valley's
fortunes. Steve's unreckoned-with enemies were about to have their
innings; they succeeded in bringing Steve down to the level of being
forced to ask his father-in-law for aid and admit that he could not
handle Constantine's affairs or what remained of them.

This was exactly what the enemies desired. A number of things combined