“Then you think Jacob is a bully and a fraud,� said Diana, with the unsparing frankness of youth.
“Heaven forbid!� said the colonel gently.
“I thought you wanted me to marry him,� she pursued, victory in her eye.
The colonel reddened. “Diana,� he said, “I don’t want you to marry anybody.�
She smiled. “Thank you,� she said; “after all, the verdict has done some good in this State, Colonel Royall.�
They were at the court-house door now, and there was a crowd in the square. The colonel got down and helped out Diana, and they walked into the arched entrance of the basement together. “I didn’t want to leave you out there to be stared at by that mob,� said the colonel; “people seem to know us at a glance.�
Diana laughed softly. “Of course no one would remember you,� she said maliciously; “they’re looking at my new hat.�
“I reckon they are,� said her father dryly; “we’ll have to find a place to hide it in.�
As he spoke they passed the last doorkeeper, and walked down the stone-paved corridor toward the elevator. It was absolutely still. On the left hand was a small room with one large window looking out into the court where a tree of heaven was growing. It had sprung from a seed and no one had cut it down. The window was barred, but the cool air of the court came in, for the sash was open. It was a room that they called “the cage,� because prisoners waited there to be summoned to the court-room to hear the verdict, but Colonel Royall did not know this. There were a narrow lounge in it, two chairs and a table.
“Wait here,� he said to Diana, “I shan’t be ten minutes. I want to see Judge Ladd, and I know where he is up-stairs. Court has adjourned for luncheon, and you won’t be disturbed.�