"It seems to me," she replied, "that money is so powerful. I daresay you will be able to live it down."
"With your help," Deane remarked sarcastically, "it seems to me very possible. By the bye," he continued, "with reference to that document, you must forgive me if I feel some slight uneasiness at times as to its safety."
"You need have none," she answered. "It is in safe keeping."
"It is your own interests as well as mine you are guarding," he reminded her.
"I am perfectly aware of it," she answered. "Since you are here, may I offer you some tea?"
"Thanks," he said, "I think not. By the bye, do you care to go to the Opera to-night? I have two stalls, and Melba is singing."
A sudden light flashed over her face. It was as though the mask had been raised for a moment. Perhaps by contrast her tone seemed colder than ever as she answered him. "I should like to very much. Will you call for me?"
"At half-past seven," he answered. "We will have a little dinner somewhere first."
"You are sure," she asked, "that you do not mind being seen out?"
"It is all to my advantage," he answered. "The men who are most talked about should never shrink from publicity. The people who have been told to-day that I am a bankrupt, a swindler, and a murderer, and that my ruin is only a matter of minutes, will hesitate if they see me with you in the stalls of the Opera to-night."