At this moment Kiki entering announced that Mr. Beecher was below.
"Tell him the truth," said McKenna quickly. "That is, three quarters of the truth. Leave it to me."
When Beecher entered, expectation and long-restrained curiosity on his face, McKenna, with a look of crestfallen defeat which completely deceived him, said immediately:
"Mr. Beecher, have you that envelope I gave you?"
"Am I to open it?" said Beecher eagerly, bringing it out.
"On the contrary," said McKenna, taking it quickly. He took it and could not resist examining the edges to see if it had been tampered with. "This is one of my failures, Mr. Beecher," he said, tearing it into small pieces. "I've got too much vanity to let you see what an ass I've been."
"What does this mean?" said Beecher, standing open-mouthed.
"It means, Teddy," said Mrs. Kildair severely, "that it is entirely your fault."
"My fault!"
"Yes, your fault. You neglected to tell Mr. McKenna the one thing that was important."