"Of course that was all over long ago—I know Jack too well."
"How dared you do it?" asked her accuser again.
"It was risky, but our names were the same, and he's half blind and somewhat deaf, and in his dotage. The chances of escaping detection were good, as the event has proved."
"Of course it wasn't my affair whether Jack told you or not. It was legal and that's the main thing."
"How dared you do it?"
"You needn't be so nasty about it; it was merely to be obliging. If you think it amusing to be a dummy bride——"
"Be silent!"
The two women stood facing each other, breathing hard, as though resting from physical combat; the face of one expressing infinite contempt, of the other infinite anger. At this juncture a servant brought a telegram to Lady Isabelle.
Thankful for the relief from an awkward pause, she tore it open, and her face lit up as she read its message.