"What are they to us?" he asked, sinking his voice almost to a whisper.
"Mrs. Rangely may be nothing to you, but Dr. Wilson is still a good deal to me, thank you."
He looked at her again with perplexity in his glance, but with his face hardening.
"You surely cannot mean that you have ceased to care for me just for a second of meaningless laughter?"
"You do these things better in your novels, Mr. Rangely, which shows what an advantage it is to have time to think speeches over. I wouldn't have my hero say a thing like that, if I were you. It would make him seem like a conceited cad."
The insolence of her manner was such as no man could bear. Rangely crimsoned to the temples. He paced across the room, while she coolly seated herself in a great Venetian chair, and began to play with a little jade image. He came back to her, and stood a moment as if he could not find words.
"Why don't you go?" she asked, looking up at him as if he were a servant sent upon an errand.
"Because," he broke out angrily, "when I go I shall not come back; and I should like to understand this thing."
She shrugged her shoulders, and leaned back in her chair, looking him over from head to foot.
"Why you quarrel with me is more than I know," he went on. "You've got tired of me, I suppose, and want to amuse yourself with another man."
"If my husband, who you say is nothing to us, were here," she said, "he would horsewhip you."
"He is not here, however, so you may digest my remark at your leisure."
Mrs. Wilson rose from her seat with an air of dignity which was really imposing.
"Mr. Rangely," she said, "it is not my custom to bandy words, even with my equals. I have allowed you the freedom of my house because I was willing to help you in your desire to be useful to Father Frontford. You have taken advantage of my kindness to insult me. This seems to me sufficiently to explain the situation."
He stared at her a moment in evident amazement. Then he burst into hoarse laughter.
"My desire to be useful to Father Frontford!" he echoed. "That is the best yet! You know I cared nothing about your pottering old church politics except to please you."
"I see that I was deceived completely," she responded coldly.
She crossed the room and pressed an ivory button.