uld I prove it? You would not
listen to reason: I had to take other means. Now, hear me."

"I hear."

"I laid my plans. For three months I've tried to conquer her, to win her
love, to take her from you. She was truer to you than I had bargained
for; I must give her credit for that. She made a good fight, but I think
I have triumphed. To-night she came to my room at my invitation."

"Well?"

"Well. You got a note. _Now, I wrote that note._ I planned this scene,
this discovery. I planned it so that your eyes would be opened, so that
you would see what she was, so that you would cast her from
you--unfaithful, a wanton, a----"

"Hold on there," I broke in; "brother of mine or no, I won't hear you
call her those names; no, not if she were ten times as unfaithful. You
won't, I say. I'll choke the words in your throat. I'll kill you, if
you utter a word against her. Oh, what have you done?"

"What have I done! Try to be calm, man. What have I done? Well, this is
what I've done, and it's the lucky day for you I've done it. I've saved
you from shame; I've freed you from sin; I've shown you the baseness of
this girl."

He rose to his feet.

"Oh, my brother, I've stolen from you your mistress; that's what I've
done."

"Oh, no, you haven't," I groaned. "God forgive you, Garry; God forgive
you! She's not my--not what you think. She's my _wife_!"

CHAPTER XXII

I thought that he would faint. His face went white as paper and he
shrank back. He gazed at me with wild, straining eyes.

"God forgive me! Oh, why didn't you tell me, boy? Why didn't you tell
me?"

In his voice there was a note more poignant than a sob.

"You should have trusted me," he went on. "You should have told me. When
were you married?"

"Just a month ago. I was keeping it as a surprise for you. I was waiting
till you said you liked and thought well of her. Oh, I thought you would
be pleased and glad, and I was treasuring it up to tell you."

"This is terrible, terrible!"

His voice was choked with agony. On her chair, Berna drooped wearily.
Her wide, staring eyes were fixed on the floor in pitiful perplexity.

"Yes, it's terrible enough. We were so happy. We lived so joyously
together. Everything was perfect, a heaven for us both. And then you
came, you with your charm that would lure an angel from high heaven. You
tried your power on my poor little girl, the girl that never loved but
me. And I trusted you, I tried to make you and her