Marion turned away. She had no words with which to answer him. She knew that he was wrong, yet she could not find it in her heart to censure him.
“You will come and see her to-night, will you not?” she said, finally. “Poor child, she has been worrying terribly about you!”
“And it has nearly killed me to stay away,” answered the young man, honestly, “but I could not face her; I was too utterly miserable, and yet, as I said just now, I would do the same thing over again under the same circumstances.”
“If you do, you will lose our friendship forever,” said Marion, solemnly. “Don’t do wrong again, Ralph, from no matter what motive.”
As Marion hurried up Broadway, she felt almost happy, for the consciousness of doing right was always her greatest pleasure.
She felt sure that Mrs. Haley would forgive him freely; then she breathed a sigh as she again faced the problem of the future.
There was no money left, and the rent was due to-morrow, while the date of that terrible mortgage was growing rapidly nearer.
As Marion walked along, she hardly raised her eyes from the pavement, but suddenly she became aware that something unusual was happening.
A half a block before her she saw a small danger sign standing in the middle of the pavement, and groups of idle loungers stood on the various corners, all gazing up at a very high building.
Marion looked up also, and then stared a little. They were raising an enormous safe to the seventh story window. It was the first time she had seen it done, and she looked on with interest.