"Yes, I know--I did wrong. But I--I love him, Mr. Jeffries. Believe me or not--I love him. It"s my only excuse. I thought I could take care of him. He needed some one to look after him, he"s too easily influenced.
You know his character is not so strong as it might be. He told me that his fellow students at college used to hypnotize him and make him do all kinds of things to amuse the other boys. He says that somehow he"s never been the same since. I--I just loved him because I was strong and he was weak. I thought I could protect him. But now this terrible thing has happened, and I find I am powerless. It"s too much for me. I can"t fight this battle alone. Won"t you help me, Mr. Jeffries?" she added pleadingly. "Won"t you help me?"
The banker was thoughtful a minute, then suddenly he turned on her.
"Will you consent to a divorce if I agree to help him?"
She looked at him with dismay. There was tragic tenseness in this dramatic situation--a father fighting for his son, a woman fighting for her husband.
"A divorce?" she stammered. "Why, I never thought of such a thing as that."
"It"s the only way to save him," said the banker coldly.
"The only way?" she faltered.
"The only way," said Mr. Jeffries firmly. "Do you consent?" he asked.
Annie threw up her head. Her pale face was full of determination, as she replied resignedly, catching her breath as she spoke:
"Yes, if it must be. I will consent to a divorce--to save him!"
"You will leave the country and go abroad to live?" continued the banker coldly.
She listened as in a dream. That she would be confronted by such an alternative as this had never entered her mind. She wondered why the world was so cruel and heartless. Yet if the sacrifice must be made to save Howard she was ready to make it.
"You will leave America and never return--is that understood?" repeated the banker.
"Yes, sir," she replied falteringly.
Mr. Jeffries paced nervously up and down the room. For the first time he seemed to take an interest in the interview. Patronizingly he said:
"You will receive a yearly allowance through my lawyer."
Annie tossed up her chin defiantly. She would show the aristocrat that she could be as proud as he was.
"Thanks," she exclaimed. "I don"t accept charity. I"m used to earning my own living."
"Oh, very well," replied the banker quickly. "That"s as you please. But I have your promise--you will not attempt to see him again?"
"What! Not see him once more? To say good-by?" she exclaimed. A broken sob half checked her utterance. "Surely you can"t mean that, Mr.
Jeffries."
The banker shrugged his shoulders.
"I don"t want the newspapers filled with sensational articles about the heartrending farewell interview between Howard Jeffries, Jr., and his wife--with your picture on the front page."
She was not listening to his sarcasm.
"Not even to say good-by?" she sobbed.
"No," replied Mr. Jeffries firmly. "Not even to say good-by."
"But what will he say? What will he think?" she cried.
"He will see it is for the best," answered the banker. "He himself will thank you for your action."
There was a long silence, broken only by the sound of the girl"s sobbing. Finally she said:
"Very well, sir. I"ll do as you say." She looked up. Her eyes were dry, the lines about her mouth set and determined. "Now," she said, "what are you going to do for him?"
The banker made a gesture of impatience as if such considerations were not important.
"I don"t know yet," he said haughtily. "I shall think the matter over carefully."
Annie was fast losing patience. She was willing to sacrifice herself and give up everything she held dear in life to save the man she loved, but the cold, deliberate, calculating att.i.tude of this unnatural father exasperated her.
"But I want to know," she said boldly. "I want to consider the matter carefully, too."
"You?" sneered Mr. Jeffries.
"Yes, sir," she retorted. "I"m paying dearly for it--with my--with all I have. I want to know just what you"re going to give him for it."
He was lost in reflection for a moment, then he said pompously:
"I shall furnish the money for the employment of such legal talent as may be necessary. That"s as far as I wish to go in the case. It must not be known--I cannot allow it to be known that I am helping him."
"Must not be known?" cried Annie in astonishment. "You mean you won"t stand by him? You"ll only just pay for the lawyer?"
The banker nodded:
"That is all I can promise."
She laughed hysterically.
"Why," she exclaimed, "I--I could do that myself if I--I tried hard enough."
"I can promise nothing more," replied Mr. Jeffries coldly.
"But that is not enough," she protested. "I want you to come forward and publicly declare your belief in your son"s innocence. I want you to put your arms around him and say to the world: "My boy is innocent! I know it and I"m going to stand by him." You won"t do that?"
Mr. Jeffries shook his head.
"It is impossible."
The wife"s pent-up feelings now gave way. The utter indifference of this aristocratic father aroused her indignation to such a pitch that she became reckless of the consequences. They wanted her to desert him, just as they deserted him, but she wouldn"t. She would show them the kind of woman she was.
"So!" she cried in an outburst of mingled anger and grief. "So his family must desert him, and his wife must leave him! The poor boy must stand absolutely alone in the world, and face a trial for his life! Is that your idea?"
The banker made no reply. Snapping her fingers, she went on: