Mrs. Whitney vented an audible sigh of relief. "Then you didn't let him deceive you!"
"He shattered my last illusion," said Janet, in a mournful voice. "Mother, I simply couldn't believe in him, in the purity of his love. I had to give him up."
Mrs. Whitney put her arms round her daughter and kissed her soothingly again and again. "Don't grieve, dear," she said. "Think how much better it is that you should have found him out now than when it was too late."
And Janet shuddered.
* * * * *
Ross dropped in at the house in the Lake Drive the next morning on his way East from the Howlands. As soon as he was alone with his mother, he asked, "How about Janet and Arthur?"
Mrs. Whitney put on her exalted expression. "I'm glad you said nothing before Janet," said she. "The child is so sensitive, and Arthur has given her a terrible shock. Men are so coarse; they do not appreciate the delicateness of a refined woman. In this case, however, it was most fortunate. She was able to see into his true nature."
"Then she's broken it off? That's good."
"Be careful what you say to her," his mother hastened to warn him. "You might upset her mind again. She's so afraid of being misunderstood."
"She needn't be," replied Ross dryly.