s sincere curiosity in her tone as she asked the question, "But,
Claude, why did you?"

"Because she lied to me."

"Oh! And had you never lied to her?"

He mumbled something about that not being the same thing. "She swore to
me that there'd never been any put-up job between her and--and--"

She helped him out. "The--the other person." She could hear the key
grating as it turned. "And was there?"

He made the impatient, circular movement of his head, as though his
collar chafed him, with which she was familiar. He was gaining time in
order to use tact. "Oh, I don't know. There was--there was something.
Whatever it was, she denied it, when all the while they were--"

She felt obliged fully to turn the key. She knew how perilous the
question might be, but it was beyond her to keep it back. "They were
what, Claude?"

"They were trying to catch me in a trap."

It was like the door into the hall of mysteries opening, but only to
make disclosures dimmer and more mystifying still. The postponement of
dreadful certainties enabled her, however, to say with some slight
relief, "But this--this other person couldn't have been very fond of her
himself if he--if he gave her up to you."

He bowed his head still lower into his hands, muttering toward the
floor: "Oh, I don't know. I don't care--now. Anyhow, she lied to me,
and"--he lifted his haggard eyes again--"and I jumped at it. I saw the
way out--and I jumped at it. I told her--I told her--I'd go and marry
some one else."

"Did you mean Elsie Darling?"

He nodded speechlessly.

It was to come back again to the point which her anger had caused her to
miss that she went forward and laid her hand on his shoulder kindly. "I
would, Claude, if I were you," she said, in a matter-of-fact voice.
"She'd make you a good wife."

"No one will make me a good wife now," he said, hoarsely. "I'm going to
marry Rosie. I'll marry her if it puts me in the gutter. I'll marry her
if I never have a cent."

She went back to her place between the pillars, leaning against one of
them. "But, Claude," she reasoned, "would that do any good? Would it
make either of you happy, after all that's been said and done?"

He seemed to writhe. "I don't care anything about that. I've got to do
it."

"You haven't got to do it if Rosie doesn't want it."

"It's got nothing to do with her."

She looked at him in astonishment. "Nothing to do with her? What do you
mean?"

He tried to explain further. H