But I refused to take the risk. Also, under the circumstances, it didn’t seem particularly wise to give the father a chance to find out about me by our appearing openly together.”

“But you yourself could have gone out openly alone, or with friends.”

“Oh, of course,” she said dryly—“and have run the risk of Jack and his father seeing me in public, and learning all about me. No, thank you—the only way for me has been to keep under cover for the present.”

Clifford had felt a great start, but he had suppressed it; and he managed to say quite casually: “Of course Jack Morton doesn’t know who you really are?”

“Of course not. Oh, I don’t mind so much what he might learn about me,” she added, a bit defiantly. “You police have nothing on me—not in the way of a conviction, anyhow. But it would not help particularly if he learned who my father had been, and that Joe Russell is my uncle, and that my brother is Slant-Face Regan.”

“But he’ll be sure to learn some day.”

“By that time he’ll have become so attached to me that it’ll not make much difference.”

[64]“But there’s his father. What about what’ll happen when he finds out? All Jack’s money comes through his father.”

[64]

“Oh, his father will come around in the end. You see he’s not to know till we get ready.”

Clifford looked at her for a long moment of silence.

“I know what you’re thinking; you’re thinking I’m just another adventuress,” she said with a shrug. “But what of that? Every woman is an adventuress who is trying to better her position and who is using her head to do it. And that’s just what every woman is doing!”

“I was not thinking chiefly of that; I was thinking of Peter Loveman. Did he suggest that you go into hiding?”

“When Jack told him of our engagement, he said he didn’t want to know anything about it, he wanted to keep out of any such affair. But when he learned Jack’s father was in town, he telephoned me to keep out of the way.”

“You’ve known Loveman some time?”

“Since I came back to America. He’s been Uncle Joe’s lawyer; and naturally they’re friends.”

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