Her eyes met his full. They were cold as snow and resolute as fate. "You will never leave these rooms until you accede to the terms I have to propose."
Her audacity fairly stunned him. He fell back a pace as he said: "What—terms?"
"First, you are to agree to resign the guardianship of my property. Second, you are to leave Oakley forthwith and forever, and to keep ever and always away from me and all that is mine."
"Bah!" he cried, angrily, "do you think I am a fool? I won't resign my guardianship; the property is mine, not yours!"
"Then I will choose a new guardian immediately. How ignorant of law you are, step-papa! Don't you know that you are legally dead? Don't you know that a lunatic can't hold property? Legally, I can choose a guardian to-morrow."
"You she-devil! But I am not a lunatic!" sneered he.
"How obtuse you are, step-papa! You are a lunatic; we have the certificates of two physicians to that effect; and that is all the law requires. Now, be reasonable; what can you do?"
"I'll get out, by heavens," he yelled; "and I'll put you in State's prison for false imprisonment!"
She turned upon him with the utmost composure. "My dear sir, you have not one witness to prove that you are a sane man. There are many to prove that you have been subject to violent fits of madness."
She turned again, and he, no longer seeking to control his rage, sprang toward her, uttering a volley of curses.