Now that the crisis was over, the cat out of the bag, John Raby knew how great his anxiety had been, by the sense of relief which found vent in a meaningless laugh. "Lawyers don't make mistakes," he replied. "It is as clear as daylight. Philip Marsden has left you thirty thousand pounds! By Jove, Belle, you are quite an heiress!" She stood up slowly, leaning on the table as if to steady herself. "That does not follow," she said, "for of course I shall refuse to take it." Her husband stared at her incredulously. "Refuse thirty thousand pounds,--are you mad?" He need not have been afraid of under-doing his part of surprise, for her attitude took him beyond art into untutored nature. "It is an insult!" she continued in a higher key. "I will write to these people and say I will not have it." "Without consulting me? You seem to forget that you are a married woman now. Am I to have no voice in the matter?" His tone was instinct with the aggressive quiet of one determined to keep his temper. "Supposing I disapproved of your refusal?" he went on, seeing from her startled look that he had her unprepared. "Surely you would not wish--" "That is another question. I said, supposing I disapproved of the refusal. What then?" Standing there in bewildered surprise, the loss of her own individuality made itself felt for the first time, and it roused the frightened resentment of a newly-caught colt. "I do not know," she replied, bravely enough. "But you would surely let me do what I thought right?" "Right! My dear girl, do stick to the point. Of course if there were urgent reasons _against_ your taking this money--" "But there are!" interrupted Belle quickly. "To begin with, he had no right to leave it to me." "I beg your pardon. The law gives a man the right to leave his money to any one he chooses." "But he had no right to choose me." "I beg your pardon again. It is not uncommon for a man to leave his money to a woman with whom he is in love." "In love!" It was Belle's turn to stare incredulously. "Major Marsden in love with me! What put that into your head?" He shrugged his shoulders impatiently. "My dear child, even if you didn't know it before,--and upon my soul you are unsophisticated enough for anything--surely it is patent now. A man doesn't leave thirty thousand to any woman he happens to know." For the first time Belle flinched visibly and her face paled. "All the more reason for refusing, surely," she replied in a low tone, after a pause. "You could not like your wife--" "Why not? It isn't as if you had cared for him, you know." The blood which had left her cheeks came back with an indignant rush. "Care for him! Can't you see that makes it doubly an insult?" "I'm afraid not. It makes it much more sentimental, and self-sacrificing, and beautiful, on his part; and I thought women admired that sort of thing. I know that leaving money to the girl who has jilted you is a stock incident in their novels."