"No, she wouldn't do that. She pretended not to see me, but she saw me, all right. She passed me in an automobile."
"Whose?"
"One of Everard's."
"Was he with her?"
"Yes."
"Neil," his mother began a little breathlessly, "I want to tell you something. I've said hard things to you, and they weren't deserved. I know it now, and I'm sorry. I want to take them all back. I've said hard things about Judith Randall."
She hurried on, afraid of being stopped, but he made no move to stop her. He listened courteously, his face not changing.
"Neil, she's not what I thought. There's no harm in her. There's no pride in her. She's just lonesome. She's just a young, young girl. She's sweet-spoken and sweet-faced. Neil, from all I hear——"
"You didn't hear all this direct from—Judith, then?"
"Judith?" she hesitated, flashing a questioning glance at him. "Is it likely? How would I get the chance? But from all I hear, she's too good for Everard and the like. And she's not safe with them. She needs——"