“I brought a fair supply with me. Now I am beginning to need some small articles, such as handkerchiefs and socks.”
“I wondered you would never go to supper with me.”
“I didn’t want you to know how little I ordered. You might have thought me mean.”
“Poor fellow!” said Chester, pityingly. “You have certainly had a hard time. And all the while your mother was living in comfort.”
“Yes, in luxury, for she is worth at least fifty thousand dollars in her own right.”
“I hope your stepfather has not got possession of it.”
“He had not when I came away. My mother is naturally cautious, and would not give it to him. He attributed this to my influence over her, but it was not so. She is of Scotch descent, and this made her careful about giving up her property. She allowed him the use of the income, only reserving a little for herself.”
“Have you had any communication with her since you left Portland?”
“I wrote her once, but received no answer.”
“The letter may not have reached her. It may have fallen into the hands of your stepfather. What is his name?”