She stood up slowly, leaning on the table as if to steady herself. "That does not follow," she said, "for of course I shall refuse to take it."
Her husband stared at her incredulously. "Refuse thirty thousand pounds,--are you mad?" He need not have been afraid of under-doing his part of surprise, for her attitude took him beyond art into untutored nature.
"It is an insult!" she continued in a higher key. "I will write to these people and say I will not have it."
"Without consulting me? You seem to forget that you are a married woman now. Am I to have no voice in the matter?" His tone was instinct with the aggressive quiet of one determined to keep his temper. "Supposing I disapproved of your refusal?" he went on, seeing from her startled look that he had her unprepared.
"Surely you would not wish--"
"That is another question. I said, supposing I disapproved of the refusal. What then?"
Standing there in bewildered surprise, the loss of her own individuality made itself felt for the first time, and it roused the frightened resentment of a newly-caught colt. "I do not know," she replied, bravely enough. "But you would surely let me do what I thought right?"
"Right! My dear girl, do stick to the point. Of course if there were urgent reasons against your taking this money--"
"But there are!" interrupted Belle quickly. "To begin with, he had no right to leave it to me."
"I beg your pardon. The law gives a man the right to leave his money to any one he chooses."