“Oh, you make me tired!” exclaimed Virginia, spitefully. “I’m staying here to watch that mine.”
“That–mine!” The Widow repeated it slowly and her eyes opened up big with triumph. “Virginia, do you mean to say you got the best of that whipper-snapper and─”
“No, nothing of the kind! No! Can’t you hear me? Oh, Mother, you’d drive a person crazy!”
“I–see!” observed the Widow and stood nodding her head as Virginia went on with her protests. “Oh, my Lord!” she burst out, “and I put up all my stock for a measly eight hundred dollars! That scoundrelly Blount–I saw it in his eye the minute I mentioned my stock! He’s tricked me, the rascal; but I’ll fool him yet–I’ll pay him back and get my stock!”
71“You’ll pay him back? Why, you’ve spent half the money to redeem your jewels and the diamonds!”
“Well, I’ll pawn them again. Oh, it makes me wild to think how that rascal has tricked me!”
“But, Mother,” protested Virginia, “hehasn’t done any work yet. They haven’t made any strike at the mine. Why not let it go until they pump out the water and really find some ore? And besides, how could Wiley know anything about it? He’s never been down the shaft.”
“But–why you told me yourself─”
“I never told you anything!” burst out Virginia tearfully. “You just jump at everything like a flea. And now you’ll tell everybody, and Wiley’ll say I did it, and─”
“Virginia Huff!” cried her mother, dramatically, “are you in love with that–thief?”