nxious and bewildered, came stumbling
along, having by some strange chance come in the direction that brought
him to the person he was seeking. Rendel looked at him.

"Well?" he said, in a strained voice, as though demanding an explanation
of Wentworth's intrusion.

The sight of his face completely bewildered Wentworth.

"Good God, Rendel!" he said, "what is it? What has happened?"

There was a pause. Then Rendel said, trying with very indifferent
success to speak in a voice that sounded something like his own--

"Didn't you see what happened?"

"I saw that--that--Stamfordham----" Wentworth began, then he stopped.

"Yes," said Rendel curtly, "you saw it--you saw what Stamfordham did?
Well, there's an end of it," and he looked miserably around him as
though hemmed in by the powers of earth and heaven.

"But, Frank," Wentworth said, still feeling as if all this were some
frightful dream, one of those dreams so vivid that they live with the
dreamer for weeks afterwards, and sometimes actually go to make his
waking opinion of the persons who have appeared in them, "tell
me--what----"

"Jack," said Rendel, "it's no good talking about it. I'll tell you
another time, I daresay, if I can. Leave me alone now, there's a good
fellow--that's all I want."

"Look here, Frank," said Wentworth; "if it's anything--anything that
Stamfordham thinks you've done--that--that you oughtn't to have
done--well, I don't believe it, that's all!"

"You are a good friend, old Jack," said Rendel, looking at him. "I might
have known you wouldn't believe it."

"Of course I don't," said Wentworth stoutly. "I don't know what it is,
but I don't believe it all the same."

"Well," said Rendel slowly, "I'll tell you this for your comfort--you
needn't believe it."

"Of course not," said Wentworth heartily, "and I don't care what it is,
of course you didn't do it. And what's more, I know you can't have done
anything to be ashamed of, and of course other people will know it too,"
he said sanguinely, carried along by his zealous friendship.

Rendel's face turned dark red again. "No," he said, "other people won't.
Of course other people will think I have done it. Don't let's talk about
it now. The fact is," mastering his voice with an effort, "I can't,
Jack. Just go away, and leave me alone. I'll come back some time."

"But what are you going to do? You're not going to sit here all day, I
suppose."

"I'll come later," Rendel said. "You must f