“Look out what you say,” said Ted. “Look out, young woman and don’t get me to take you at your word.” She shivered ecstatically. “Ted,”--the time seemed ripe, no doubt--“do you care for that Thorstad girl?” “Who--Freda Thorstad?” “All the girls are talking because you were seen at some hotel with her.” “Let them talk, the silly fools.” She released herself a little. “Where is she, Ted?” “Why?” He began to tease her, and her lack of control showed instantly. “You know she’s disappeared. Why did she go and where did she go?” “Why should I know?” “You do know,” she countered. “I said nothing of the sort.” Pulling herself loose, she confronted him. Every thwarted undisciplined desire in her raged at the frail control maintained by habit. Her eyes, no longer sleepy, blazed at him. “You know where she is. The creature has gone off somewhere to hide herself and her shame, I suppose. The abandoned hussy. I know all about it, Ted. I found out all about it.” He became a little surly and yet curiosity seemed to pique him. “You know all about what, Bob?” She was losing control completely now. The confession, abasement, she had worked up to was not forthcoming. “Where is she?” she stormed. “Where are you keeping that girl?” Her face had changed from that of a pretty girl to that of a furious, uncontrolled shrew. Her shrill voice tore through the empty room, struck against the silence. “Hush,” he said sharply, “don’t yell like that, Bob. Don’t be a fool.” “I won’t have it. I won’t have you making a laughing stock out of me. Before everybody--everybody’s talking, laughing at you--at me. You’ve got to give that girl up. You’ve got to! Pay her off and let her go away and hide till it’s over.” The vein of caddishness was rich in Ted. He looked at her coolly--calculated her hysteria, made her maddeningly conscious of his imperturbability. Turning away, he lit a cigarette. “So you won’t answer me!” “I really don’t know what you mean, Bob. You hurl a lot of accusations at me and in the same breath you want a lot of promises. I don’t know what you’re driving at, my dear.” “Then I’m through with you,” she said, viciously. An impolite smile glimmered at the corners of his mouth. “Oh, in that case--” He turned to the door. But she did not have strength enough to let him go. She followed him, distressing now in her abandonment which was not even held together by anger. “Ted--you know I care--how can you--how can you?” He turned and appraised her. It was obvious now how much of her charm was in that thrown aside pose of indifference, lazy mockery. “You told me you were through with me.” His voice was quite cold, stiff. It brought her to him with a rush, her arms thrown about his neck, cheek against his, hot, panting. “I didn’t mean it, Ted. Really, I was just about crazy. I won’t talk about that girl--about anything. Let’s just be as we were when you first came in.” “I didn’t start all this,” he answered sullenly.