“No, you won’t,” cried Billie. “No,
no, Edward, you couldn’t do that.”
“No, you won’t,” cried Billie so suddenly that she surprised herself. “No, no, Edward, you couldn’t do that. That wouldn’t be honest. You gave him your promise, didn’t you, to look after his work until he came back. I am sure you would regret it very, very much if you didn’t. If he had not meant to come back, he would never have called me up on the telephone. You see, it wasn’t necessary. They expected to stay several days, didn’t they? But he knew I was going to be at Mr. Duffy’s lodge that afternoon, and although he seemed in a tremendous hurry, he called me up to ask me to give you that message. You are to represent him,” she repeated, “as you promised. I am sure he meant every word he said. Please, Edward, do wait until you get word from him. How can you distrust any one who looks so exactly like you? It would be like disbelieving in one’s self.”
Edward did not reply. With an angry, impatient gesture he left her, to bring the car out of the garage. Presently she climbed in beside him.
“It won’t hurt you to do something for some one else,” she went on. “I don’t want to preach, of course, but I’d just like to ask you if you ever have, that you can remember, really made a sacrifice for any one?”
“I can’t say I have,” said Edward. “Perhaps I’ve never had the opportunity.”
“Do you remember that night when we didn’t find the dead man, you told me you had been afraid all your life of daylight and dark and draughts and people and poverty? This is such a splendid chance to show you are not afraid of anything in the world, even of keeping your promise, Edward.”
“But,” he exclaimed, “I have no money, Billie.”
“Take out sailing parties and launch parties and carry baggage and do the things Edward did. Papa always said the proudest moment of his life was the first time he earned five dollars.”
“By Jove, it would be rather nice,” he said after a pause. “Grandmamma has always treated me like an infant, you know. When she finds out I can earn a living, perhaps she’ll have a little more respect for me.”