"My dear, I have no intention of telling any lies to you. I do breathe tarradillies now and then; I am not too proud to confess it. You would, too, if you were situated like me; but I don't waste them on people whom it is necessary to be honest with. I did keep that money; it was far more useful to me than it would be to that Patrick of yours. He didn't want it, and I did. You were full of pity for him, but you had not a scrap of pity to bestow on me, so I had to pity myself, and I did so by taking your money. I found it most useful. But for it, Sophy and I would not now be at Castle Mahun. I hoped what I did would never be discovered. Well, it has been, but it does not greatly matter, as you are the one to make the discovery."
"What do you mean? what can you mean?"
"What I say; you can send me to prison, of course, and ruin me for life, but you won't, for your own sake. See what I have done to save you!"
Janet put her hand into her pocket and pulled out the Eastcliff letter.
She held it aloft, and laughed in her companion's face. "You won't be hard on me now, Biddy," she said, in the tones of one addressing an equal. "If I have been a thief—it is an ugly word, and there is no use in speaking it again; if I have been a thief, you, too, have done something which you are ashamed of. That something has been discovered at Mulberry Court, and this letter contains a full account of it. Your aunt, Lady Kathleen, was to read it first, and then, of course, in the ordinary course, your father would have heard the whole disgraceful story. Little as you think of me, I have saved you from disgrace, Biddy, my love. You are fond of Nature, but Nature won't tell tales. If you will promise to respect the secret you have discovered about me, I will respect your secret; I will tear up this letter, here on this wild hilltop, and Nature shall bury the tell-tale pieces as she wills and where she likes. Here is the letter, Biddy; I have saved you. Ought you not to be obliged to me?"
A queer change came over Bridget while Janet was speaking; a certain nobleness seemed to go out of her figure; she looked less like part of Wild Hawk than she had done five minutes ago; the color receded from her cheeks; her eyes lost their proud fire, her lips their proud smile.
"How did you manage to get that letter?" she whispered in a low tone.
"I am not going to tell you, my darling; I have got it, and that ought to be enough for you. Now, are we each to respect the secret of the other, or not?"