“Not so sure of it myself, Nan. But please listen to me carefully. Our friend from the southern part of the State is here. I have him marked at his hotel. He has probably come to see you. Let him say all he has on his mind, then report to me. You will probably hear from Thurston, too, during the day. He’s trying a case this morning. But our brother from the South comes first. Don’t let him frighten you; just listen and encourage him if necessary to show what he’s up to this time.”
“Very well,” she replied, though the thought of facing Harlowe alone filled her with misgivings.
Mrs. Copeland was on the wire immediately afterward, to ask if she could be of any service. Then Thurston’s clerk called her to make an appointment for three o’clock.
The night’s vigil had left its marks upon her. She was nervously alert for the day’s developments, but nothing could be worse than the long struggle against temptation. She had, she fancied, considered every possibility as to the future and she was prepared for anything that might befall her. She was happy in the thought that she faced the world with a clean conscience; never in her life had she been on so good terms with herself.
She was standing at the parlor window when at eleven a familiar figure entered the gate. Harlowe, tall, slightly stooped, advanced to the door. She called to the maid not to trouble to answer the ring and let the man in herself.
He began with formal condolences on what he called “her irreparable loss.”
“Much as we may be prepared for the death of a loved one, it always comes with a shock. I sympathize with you very deeply, Miss Farley.”
She murmured her thanks and bade him be seated. She wished she had asked Eaton to be present at the interview, which he had forecast with a prescience that justified all her faith in his unusual powers.
“I came as quickly as possible after hearing of Mr. Farley’s death, in the hope of being of some service to you—of avoiding any difficulties that might possibly arise with reference to the settlement of Mr. Farley’s affairs.”
She nodded, and remembering Eaton’s injunction, gave him strict attention.