"Betty might tell them."

"Betty might _not_ tell them, not if she was _my wife_!" He bawled out
the words in a way that boded no blissful future to the one who should
have the misfortune to become his wife. "I think I'd have her better
trained than that. As for you, Mother, you're all off, as usual! What do
you think could possibly happen to _you_? You're always saying you do
everything for me, but when it comes right down to brass tacks I notice
you're pretty much of a selfish coward on your own account."

For a moment the baffled woman faced her angry uncontrolled son in
speechless rage, then gathered command of the situation once more, an
inscrutable expression on her hard-lined face. Her voice took on an
almost pitiful reproach as she spoke in a low, even tone that could
hardly fail to bring the instant attention of her spoiled son:

"Bertie, you don't know what you're talking about!" she said, and there
was a strained white look of fear about her mouth and eyes as she spoke.
"I'm going to tell you, in this great crisis, what I did for you, what I
risked that you might enjoy the luxury which you have had for the last
five years. Listen! The day before Mr. Stanhope died he wrote a letter
to the trustees of Betty's fortune giving very explicit directions about
her money and her guardianship, tying things up so that not one cent
belonging to her should pass through my hands, which would have left us
with just my income as the will provided, and would have meant
comparative poverty for us all except as Betty chose to be benevolent. I
kept a strict watch on all his movements those last few days, of course,
and when I found he had given Candace a letter to mail, I told her I
would look after it, and I brought it up to my room and read it, for I
suspected just some such thing as he had done. He was very fussy about
Betty and her rights, you remember, and he had always insisted that this
was Betty's house, her mother's wedding present from the grandfather,
and therefore not ours at all, except through Betty's bounty. I was
determined that we should not be turned out of here, and that you should
not have to go without the things you wanted while that child had
everything and far more than she needed. So I burned the letter! Now, do
you see what the mother you have been blaming has done for you?"

But the son looked back with hard glittering eyes and a sneer on his
handsome lustful lips:

"I guess you did it about as