that she half guessed his meaning, but she wished to
be certain. "What do you intend by that?" she asked.

"It's tolerable simple," said Ronicky. "I've seen square things done in
my life, but I've never yet seen a girl throw up all she had to do a
good turn for a gent she's seen only once. You follow me, lady? I pretty
near guess the trouble you're running into."

"You guess what?" she asked.

"I guess that you're one of John Mark's best cards. You're his chief
gambler, lady, and he uses you on the big game."

She had drawn back, one hand pressed against her breast, her mouth tight
with the pain. "You have guessed all that about me?" she asked faintly.
"That means you despise me!"

"What folks do don't matter so much," said Ronicky. "It's the reasons
they have for doing a thing that matters, I figure, and the way they do
it. I dunno how John Mark hypnotized you and made a tool out of you, but
I do know that you ain't changed by what you've done."

Ronicky Doone stepped to her quickly and took both her hands. He was
not, ordinarily, particularly forward with girls. Now he acted as
gracefully as if he had been the father of Ruth Tolliver. "Lady," he
said, "you've saved two lives tonight. That's a tolerable lot to have
piled up to anybody's credit. Besides, inside you're snow-white. We've
got to go, but I'm coming back. Will you let me come back?"

"Never, never!" declared Ruth Tolliver. "You must never see me--you must
never see Caroline Smith again. Any step you take in that direction is
under peril of your life. Leave New York, Ronicky Doone. Leave it as
quickly as you may, and never come back. Only pray that his arm isn't
long enough to follow you."

"Leave Caroline?" he asked. "I'll tell you what you're going to do,
Ruth. When you get back home you're going to tell Caroline that Jerry,
here, has seen the light about Mark, and that he has money enough to pay
back what he owes."

"But I haven't," broke in Jerry.

"I have it," said Ronicky, "and that's the same thing."

"I'll take no charity," declared Jerry Smith.

"You'll do what I tell you," said Ronicky Doone. "You been bothering
enough, son. Go tell Caroline what I've said," he went on to the girl.
"Let her know that they's no chain on anybody, and, if she wants to find
Bill Gregg, all she's got to do is go across the street. You
understand?"

"But, even if I were to tell her, how could she go, Ronicky Doone, when
she's watched?"

"If she can't ma