“Ethel, your jewels weren’t stolen.” There was a pause as if the girl were trying to gather courage enough to confess. “I took them. I pawned them.”
“Amy!” cried the other. “You?”
“I had to have money. I took them. A woman told me I could get it by pretending to the company the things were stolen. She said they’d never find it out and would pay. I tried it, and they paid.”
Miss Cartwright looked down at her, amazed, indignant, horrified.
“Do you mean to say you deliberately swindled the company?”
“I couldn’t help it, Ethel,” she declared piteously. “I didn’t think of it in that way. I didn’t mean to. I didn’t, indeed.”
“Why, why, why? Why in God’s name did you do it? Tell me quickly, why?”
Amy could no longer meet her sister’s glance. She dropped her head.
“I lost a lot of money gambling, playing auction bridge.”
“Playing with whom?” Ethel demanded sharply.