Dick said nothing.
“We’ll have lots of sport this summer,” Merry went on. “It’s too bad you can’t see some of the games. But, then, I don’t suppose you care anything about them?”
The heart of the boy gave a strange throb. Then Frank had decided to go away and leave him behind!
“Why won’t I see any of them?” he asked. “You are going to make me go with you, aren’t you?”
“No,” was the quiet answer.
“But—you—said——” Then Dick choked and stopped, his mixed emotions getting the mastery of him.
“I might have taken you with us if I had not found that you were so set against it,” Frank said. “But I have come to the conclusion that it will be better to leave you behind. Then I shall not be bothered with you.”
The face of the lad flushed with angry indignation, and his dark eyes flashed.
“Oh, that is it!” he cried scornfully. “You pretended at first that you were so greatly interested in me that you were ready to do anything for me, but now I know that it was all pretense, and that you simply wanted to make me uncomfortable. Father said that you were to take care of me and see that I received proper training, but, just as soon as you think I may be a little bother to you, you are ready to drop me. That shows what kind of a brother you are! I’m glad I’ve found out! I wouldn’t go with you now if you wanted me to! You couldn’t make me go with you!”
“It’s true,” said Frank quietly, “that father wanted me to take care of you, but it may be that he did not know the kind of a task he was imposing on me. If you were the right kind of a boy, I’d do everything in my power to your advantage, no matter how much trouble it cost me; but it is evident that you prefer to run wild and come up in any old way. You choose your ignorance in preference to all the advantages I could give you. I fear I could not make much of a man of you, anyhow, so why should I try?”