“And your promise?”
“I shall not give you any promise.”
He spoke with quiet resolution, but without menace of any sort.
Miss Davison looked grave.
“You mean to go on with this persecution? You mean to follow me about, to insult me by your suspicions—”
“You told me you did not care what I thought. How then can any suspicions I may have be insulting?”
“Oh, don’t let us quibble,” said she impatiently. “I ask you to leave me alone. I wish to drop your acquaintance, but to do it amicably and without any ill-will. Or, if you won’t do that, I ask you to bring specific charges against me, or even to give information about me to the police.”
“Miss Davison!”
“Oh, I’m quite prepared for you to do that. Then I should have something definite to meet, I should understand your position. But that you, without any right to follow me about and persecute me, without any proof that I have ever done anything disgraceful or unlawful, should keep watch over my movements and spy upon my actions, should pay unexpected calls upon my friends and relations, and appear to be always at hand when anything unusual takes place in my family, I say it is infamous, intolerable. I won’t put up with it, and I insist that you shall put an end to this persecution. Now—promise.”
“I refuse to promise,” said Gerard stubbornly.