"Well, then," said Tom, "we happen to know you needed just that sum. You tried to borrow it of my father, and you paid it out in the evening."
Evidently Mr. Tom thought this sentence his crowning success, for he rose up, trying to look very fine, as he finished it.
To Mildred the next moment seemed an hour of pain. She sat still, gazing ahead of her, trying to realize the situation. Then they accused her of stealing the money!
"And you think I took it?" she said, faintly.
"I'm afraid we don't think much about it," said Mr. Tom. "Circumstances are dead against you."
Mildred stood up, putting out one trembling hand as though she would implore some consideration. She thought of her mother lying ill at home; of all the miseries of the past few weeks. It made her head dizzy, and she sank back into her chair, while Tom continued:
"Now I know all about it, Miss Lee, as you'll see. You bought a gray silk dress of a peddler; the girls all saw it; and you didn't know how you were to pay for it. You got awfully hard up Wednesday for money—twenty-two dollars—and you tried to borrow it of father. He couldn't lend it to you, and, in plain words, you stole it from him. Pity I wasn't a lawyer," added the young man, with a chuckle.
"HOW DARE YOU SAY SUCH A THING?"
"Mr. Hardman, how dare you say such a thing?" cried Milly, starting from her chair.