"Of course you are," Sally returned stonily. "But you needn't be. I'm
not going to let this make things any harder for you and Mary Warden."

"How perfectly mean! You know I wasn't thinking anything like that!"

"Yes, dear, I do know it." In sudden contrition, Sally caught the
other girl's hand and laid her cheek transiently against it. "What I
meant to make clear was"--she faltered momentarily--"I've made up my
mind I'm a Jonah, and the only decent thing for me to do is to quit
you both, Lucy, my dear!"

She ended on a round note of determination rather than of defiance,
and endured calmly, if with a slightly self-conscious smile, the
distressed look of her companion.

"Don't be silly!" this last retorted, pulling herself together. "You
know you're welcome--"

"Of course I do. All the same, I'm not taking any more, thanks."

"But it's only a question of time. If you can't wait for Huckster's to
take you on again, Mary and I can easily keep things going until you
find another job."

"But that wouldn't be fair!"

"What wouldn't be fair?"

"To sponge on you two under false pretences." "False pretences!" Lucy
iterated blankly.

"I was laid off last Saturday. I didn't say anything, but I've been
looking for something else ever since--and this is Wednesday, and I'm
through. I'm sick and tired. I've got just as much right as anybody to
live on society, and that's what I'm going to do from now on!"

Miss Spode lowered a cloth skirt over her head and blouse before
pursuing. "But what I can't understand is how--assuming you're in
earnest--"

"Deadly earnest!" Sally declared.

"--and mean to go through with this--how you think you'll get a start
without doing something downright wrong."

"It wouldn't be fair to tempt me the way I feel to-day."

"There's only one thing," Miss Spode announced, adjusting her hat,
"that prevents me from speaking to a cop about you: I know you're a
fraud. You couldn't do anything dishonourable to save you."

"Oh, couldn't I!" Sally returned ominously. "You wait and see!"

"Well, well," said the other indulgently, "have it your own way.
Hooray for crime! But if I stop here listening to you preach
anarchy I'll be late for Sammy. So I'm off." Pausing in the doorway,
she looked back with just a trace of doubt colouring her regard. "Do
try to brace up and be sensible, honey. I'm worried about leaving you
alone with all these blue devils."

"You needn't be. I can take care of mysel