‘And,’ she said, raising her voice angrily; ‘and to tell you I consider you owe me an apology—me and Jennifer.’
‘Oh!’ Judith buried her face in her hands and laughed. ‘Oh! that’s very funny.’
She looked up at Geraldine with a sudden fantastic hope that she would see her laughing too; but the face presented to her was hostile and heavy. At sight of it she felt the laughter begin to shake her terrifyingly; and checked it with a gasp.
‘I suppose you will deny having anything to do with this?’
‘Oh, deny it—of course I do,’ said Judith with weary contempt.
‘Deny having insinuated—suggested——’ she began loudly.
‘I have never bothered to mention your name to anyone. Why should I? It’s nothing to do with me.’
‘No,’ she said, her face and voice rousing a little from their heavy deliberate monotony. ‘It’s nothing to do with you.’ She thought a moment and added slowly: ‘Then there’s some misunderstanding.’
‘Yes, some misunderstanding. Why go on treating it as if it were important?’