would
never hold it against him, but he won't listen. He keeps on talking
about paying it back, and making good before we can be married and all
that. And he simply will not consent to come and make good on the
ranch, and pay you out of his salary, if he feels he must pay.

"He says ranching is too tame for him--dad, think of that! Too tame,
when he knows very well it would mean-- But he doesn't seem to care
whether we're together or not. He says he can make a fortune flying,
and he said he might go in partnership with Bland Halliday. He says we
can't think of being married until he has paid you--and he imagines he
can earn the money with that airplane! And I know perfectly well he
can't, because if he does make a cent Bland Halliday will cheat him out
of it. And dad--" Mary V's voice trembled "--he went off that morning
with that fellow, exactly in the opposite direction from the ranch! He
never intended to come, and he didn't care enough to tell me, even. He
just went as if nothing in the world mattered! And we were all
hunting--"

"Well, if you look at it that way it's easy enough to handle him,"
Sudden observed. "I've been thinking myself the young imp showed
mighty little thought for you. Of course you don't want to marry a
fellow like that."

"Why, I do too! What, for gracious sake, ever put that idea into your
head? But I don't want him to act like a perfectly crazy lunatic. I
wish you'd speak to him. He won't listen to me--we just quarrel when I
try to reason with him."

Sudden smoothed down his face with his hand. "I expect you do, all
right. The dove of peace is going to find mighty poor roosting on your
roof, babe, if I'm any judge."

"I suppose you mean I'm quarrelsome, but you simply don't understand.
It was Johnny who quarrelled with me because I wanted him to have some
sense. I wish you'd speak to him, dad."

"Oh, I'll speak to him," her dad promised grimly.

Still, he did not immediately proceed to speak. Instead, he drove the
car down to the garage and put it away, passing rather close to the
airplane without giving much attention to Johnny. His casual wave of a
hand could have meant almost anything, and Johnny felt a small tremor
of apprehension. When he was merely one of the men on the payroll he
had stood just a bit in awe of old Sudden, and he could not all at once
throw off the feeling, even though Sudden had willingly enough
acknowledged him as a prospective son-in