But Stephen said nothing to this, he was not caring just then what happened to Wade. Benson's resentment and displeasure could take what form it might there, it mattered not to him.
“Certainly I have no explanation to offer,” said the lawyer haughtily. “For many years I managed your aunt's affairs to the best of my ability; she is a troublesome, a dangerous, and an ungrateful woman. Yet I hold Wade responsible; of course, he is back of the whole agitation.”
But Stephen's silence, and Stephen's face, which spoke plainly of his utter misery, distressed Benson more than he could have thought possible. He had no feeling of resentment toward Stephen, but he wanted to hear him speak, to hear him declare himself; he longed to hear him say generously that his confidence and affection were unshaken. For years he had felt entirely self-sufficient; he had desired nothing of any man; but now he found that he was suddenly hungry for these expressions of trust and love. The loneliness of his life came back and smote him. He was growing old, and only Stephen had brought youth to his door. Did the boy doubt him? In his first feverish impulse to bind him to him at any price, he was almost tempted to tell him the whole truth, of his love for Virginia Lan-dray, that so base a motive as that of gain had never entered into his mind, but this he put aside as a momentary weakness. He would not offer any explanation to any one, but in the morning he would send for Wade, and pay for that land, this done, he would have saved himself with dignity and self-respect, and he would have saved himself in the boy's eyes. And then he thought of the price he had received for the land, in the excitement of the moment he had quite overlooked this point. Was it possible that Wade had carried his investigation as far as that! He could believe that once started he would go to the bottom of things. He remembered to have heard Stephen tell Gibbs only the night before that Wade had been out of town for a day or two recently. Very white of face he turned to Stephen, who met his glance miserably enough, and with a mute appeal.
“Go on!” he commanded harshly. “What more have you to tell me?”
“There's something about the price you got for that land,” said the young man huskily.
Benson shook his head.
“You'll have to be more explicit, Stephen,” he said cautiously; “and you seem to have forgotten that I have just told you Stark bought that land.”
“They say he transferred it to you.”
“Subsequently he did, but that is neither here nor there. It was my privilege to buy it from Stark if I wished to.” He smiled almost tolerantly. “I hope your friend Ben Wade does not dispute my right in that particular.”
“He seems to think that Stark merely acted for you; that you were the actual purchaser.”