She made no answer to that, and he muttered:
"Fifteen thousand!"
"Frank," she said, "I've done what I had to do, what I promised to. I've shown you the paper; I've told you how much this money means to us; I've told you it means avoiding ruin and bankruptcy and all that disgrace. That's what John made me promise to tell you, and its all I have to tell you from him. I've done what I said I would on his behalf."
"Yes, yes, that's all right. Don't distress yourself, Christine. I just want to have another look at this paper, and to think it over a little. It is a goodish bit of money, you know. But then old John's always been a good friend of mine, and if times weren't so uncommon bad——"
He wrinkled his brow over the paper again.
"And now I have to speak on my own account. Frank, you must find some good, some plausible, reason for refusing. You mustn't lend John the money."
"Hallo?"
He looked up from the paper in great surprise.
"You see, John doesn't know the truth," she answered.
He rose and stood by the fire, looking down on her thoughtfully.