“Did my opinion of you really matter as much as that?”
“Why, of course; it meant everything to me. And Helen——”
There was a choking sensation in his throat. He turned his head and looked out through the window at a quiet street lined with brownstone fronts. He laughed sadly.
“I forgot for a moment that I am still a hunted man. I am still an outlaw, and all officers are not as generous as Culligore. My past is hanging over me like a great black cloud. But perhaps some day——”
She smiled as he broke off. “Perhaps some day,” she murmured, “the cloud will roll away.”
His fingers tightened convulsively about her hand; then he opened the door and called to the chauffeur. The cab swerved up to the curb and stopped.
“Good-by, Helen.”
Her lips trembled and for a moment she could not speak.
“Au revoir—Gray Phantom!”
He drew a long, deep breath as the cab glided away. He watched it till it was out of sight. There was a smile on his lips and his eyes held a tender light.