“You are the first man I ever offered to give a part of my great secret,” he said, “and you have refused to accept it! I did not expect it of you! My confidence in you has been misplaced, but again I warn you to be silent. If you betray me, it will cost you your life!”
Then he turned and left the veranda, walking rapidly away into the darkness. Hodge gave himself a shake.
“The man means me harm!” he decided. “I feel that he wished to get me away from the house for no good purpose. He is dangerous, and Elsie must not remain beneath this roof!”
Then he thought of Elsie waltzing with Skelding and ground his teeth again.
“Why did she accept him for that waltz? She knew I was waiting for her! Can it be that she wishes to stand me off?”
The thought filled him with intense anguish, so that beads of cold perspiration started out upon his face. The music stopped. The waltz was over.
“I’ll keep out of the way for a time,” he decided. “I am in no mood to be seen now.”
Some of the dancers came out onto the veranda, where they could chat, but Bart remained in a dark corner. Everybody seemed happy, and he was most miserable.
After a time a little group of students gathered near him and lighted their cigarettes. He saw their faces by the flash of the match, and an exclamation nearly escaped his lips as he observed that Skelding was one of them.