But Mr Oswald would do nothing of the sort. He was tired and perplexed with the matter, and he had come to the determination to pay the lost money, and wait till time should throw light on the circumstances of its loss, or until the guilty person should betray himself.
“You must go, Frank. You are not fit to be here,” said he.
“I want to hear you tell Davie that you don’t believe he is a thief.”
A thief! That is a very ugly word, and David winced as it was spoken. Mr Oswald winced too.
“Money has been taken from this room, and until the manner of its disappearance be discovered, all who had access to the place must, in a sense, be open to suspicion. Let us hope that the guilty person will be found out, and in the meantime, let nothing more be said about it.”
“But why did you not tell me at once that you suspected me?” said David, in some excitement.
“It was not a pleasant thing to tell.”
“No, but it is not pleasanter to hear it now. There is less chance that the guilty person may be traced now, than if the loss had been declared at once. And must I lie under the suspicion always? I do not think you have been just to me.”
“That will do. The less said the better,” said Mr Oswald. “Frank, you must go home.”
“You will not go away, Davie?” said Frank.