This career of duplicity could not be expected to last long. One afternoon Miss Steele brought matters to a crisis by calling upon me to work a sum on the spot which was not in the book.
I failed egregiously.
“That’s singular,” said she; “it’s far simpler than those you brought with you to-day. How long did it take you to do them?”
I looked hard at Miss Steele, and she looked hard at me. The pirate game was up at last.
“About two minutes each,” said I.
“Two minutes?”
“Yes—as fast as I could copy them out of the crib. I’m sorry, Miss Steele.”
She shut up her book abruptly.
“I didn’t expect it of you, Jones,” said she; “you’ve been making a fool of me. I’ve lost confidence in you; now you can go.”
“Oh, I say. Miss Steele, I’m so awfully—”