o much ashamed, or something. And
this is a strange place to say it--and time. But when I saw you just now
I--I felt as if I must say it. I couldn't wait another minute. Cap'n
Kendrick, I want to beg your pardon."

To add to his amazement and embarrassed distress he saw that she was
very close to tears.

"Why--why--" he stammered.

"Don't say anything. There isn't anything for _you_ to say. I don't ask
you to forgive me--you couldn't, of course. But I--I just had to tell
you that I am so ashamed of myself, of my misjudging you, and the things
I said to you. I know that you were right and I was all wrong."

"Why--why, here, hold on!" he broke in. "I don't understand."

"Of course you don't. And I can't explain. Probably I never can and you
mustn't ask me to. But--but--I had to say this. I had to beg your pardon
and tell you how ashamed I am.... That's all.... Thank you."

She turned and almost ran from the platform, down the steps and across
the street to the waiting buggy. Sears Kendrick stared after her, stared
until that buggy disappeared around the bend in the road. Then he
breathed heavily, straightened his cap, slowly shook his head, and
entered the lawyer's office. He was still in a sort of trance when he
sat down in the chair in the inner room and heard Bradley bid him good
morning. He returned the good morning, but he heard, or understood, very
little of what the lawyer said immediately afterward. When he did begin
vaguely to comprehend he found the latter was speaking of Elizabeth
Berry.

"I wish I knew what her trouble is," Bradley was saying. "She won't tell
me, won't even admit that there is any trouble, but that doesn't need
telling. The last half dozen times I have seen her she has seemed and
looked worried and absent-minded. And this morning she drove way over
here to ask me some almost childish questions about her investments, the
money the judge left her. Wanted to know if it was safe, or something
like that. She didn't admit that was it, exactly, but that was as near
as I could get to what she was driving at. Do you know what's troubling
her, Kendrick?"

Sears shook his head. "No-o," he replied. "I've heard--but no, I don't
know. She wanted to be sure her money was safe, you say?"

"Why, not safely invested, I don't think that was it. She seemed to want
to know what I'd done with the bonds themselves and the other securities
of hers. I told her they were in the deposit vaults over at the Bayp