he meant. It was about
all I could do to get out a last word to the professor as he went out
the door:

"'Night!"

CHAPTER XX

BILLINGS RAMBLES

Ten minutes later I was almost wide awake, for Billings was talking over
long distance--and to _her_!

But I did not like the way he did it.

"Shut up, Francis!" he bellowed. "Now you listen to what I'm telling
you--and do _just_ as I tell you to, too--if you don't, I'll mash your
face when I come up there! You hear?"

And he swore at her--yes, by Jove, _swore_!

"Oh, here--I say now!" I remonstrated indignantly.

"It's all right, Dicky," and he waved his fat hand indifferently as he
hung up the receiver. "Francis wants to drive that car down for us in
the morning--Francis, now!" And his hands went out impressively.

And dash it, I _was_ impressed--I was delighted.

"By Jove!" I cried. "Fine!" For I knew by that that she had forgiven me.

"Fine!" snorted Billings. "You don't know what you're talking about!
Francis hasn't got sense enough to get a road engine ten feet without
smashing it, much less a car twenty-five miles."

"Oh, look here!" I growled protestingly, "I don't like to hear you
talking about--er--Frances that way."

Billings grunted and bit a cigar savagely without stopping to clip it.
He pulled fiercely at it a moment.

"Kind of you, old chap," he exclaimed, "but you don't know our family as
_I_ do. If Francis has got a headache _now_, I know that by morning--"

"Headache?" I cried in dismay.

He nodded. "So I understood over the 'phone--been getting at the
governor's private stock, I'd bet all I've got." He shook his head
gloomily. "No, sir; that car cost five thousand, and when you can't
trust people sober, how are you going to trust them drunk?"

I sighed as I remembered the half pint of whisky she had taken--but,
dash it, I didn't care! It somehow didn't seem to make any difference in
my loving her. The only thing important, really, in the matter of the
car was that she might hurt herself. Billings didn't seem to think of
that. And yet, by Jove, she _wanted_ to come! She _must_!

"See here," I said coaxingly, for Billings seemed to have gone off in a
moody, brown study, "you must remember, old chap, your sister has been
cooped up there in Radcliffe for months. Why not let her have the run
down to the city and back? It will do her good, you know."

"Of course," he said absently. "She's going to drive the car down."

"Eh--what