"It's an apology," said Dave, anxious for her to continue.
"Yes, I suppose it is." She paused. "But why to you?" Then a whimsical smile spread over her round face. "I thought you two were nearly square. Now, if the apology had come to me——"
"Yes, I hadn't thought of that."
Both sat thinking for some time. They arrived at the point where the trail turned up to Tom Chepstow's house. Betty ignored the turning and kept on.
"Is that mill worth all that money?" she asked suddenly.
Dave shook his head.
"You've come too far," he said, pointing at her uncle's house. And the girl smiled.
"I want to have a look at the mill. Why are you buying it at that price, Dave?"
"Because there's no time to haggle, and—I want it."
Betty nodded. She was looking straight ahead, and the man failed to see the tender light his words had conjured in her eyes. She knew that Dave would never have paid that money to anybody else, no matter how much he wanted the mill. He was doing it for Jim. However unworthy the man was, it made no difference to his large-hearted nature.