e had wished him a quick recovery on the previous evening. Kenwardine,
however, helped him into his hammock and after the carriers started went
back to the room where Clare sat. He noted that although the sun was hot
the shutter was not drawn across the window, which commanded the street.

"Well," he said, "Mr. Brandon has gone and on the whole that's a relief."

"Do you know why he went so soon?" Clare asked.

Kenwardine sat down and looked at her thoughtfully. He was fond of Clare,
though he found her something of an embarrassment now and then. He was
not rich and ran certain risks that made his ability to provide for her
doubtful, while she had no marked talents to fall back upon if things
went against him. There was, however, the possibility that her beauty
might enable her to make a good marriage, and although Kenwardine could
not do much at present to forward this plan he must try to prevent any
undesirable entanglement. Brandon, for example, was not to be thought of,
but he suspected Clare of some liking for the young man.

"Yes," he said, "I know and sympathize with him. In fact, I quite see why
he found it difficult to stay. The situation was only tolerable while he
was very ill."

"Why?"

Kenwardine meant to tell her. It was better that she should smart a
little now than suffer worse afterwards.

"As soon as he began to get better Brandon remembered that we were the
cause of his misfortunes. You can see how this complicated things."

"But we had nothing to do with them," Clare said sharply. "What made him
think we had?"

"It's not an illogical conclusion when he imagines that he lost his
papers in our house."

Clare got up with a red flush in her face and her eyes sparkling. "It's
absurd!" she exclaimed. "He must have been delirious when he said so."

"He didn't say so in as many words; Brandon has some taste. But he was
perfectly sensible and intended me to see what he meant."

The girl stood still, trembling with anger and confusion, and Kenwardine
felt sorry for her. She was worse hurt than he had expected, but she
would rally.

"But he couldn't have been robbed while he was with us," she said with an
effort, trying to understand Dick's point of view. "He hadn't an
overcoat, so the plans must have been in the pocket of his uniform, and
nobody except myself was near him."

She stopped with a gasp as she remembered how she had slipped and seized
Dick. In doing so her hand had caught his pocket