Brandon of the Engineers

"Why?"

Kenwardine meant to tell her. It was better that she should smart a

little now than suffer worse afterwards.

"As soon as he began to get better Brandon remembered that we were the

cause of his misfortunes. You can see how this complicated things."

"But we had nothing to do with them," Clare said sharply. "What made him

think we had?"

"It's not an illogical conclusion when he imagines that he lost his

papers in our house."

Clare got up with a red flush in her face and her eyes sparkling. "It's

absurd!" she exclaimed. "He must have been delirious when he said so."

"He didn't say so in as many words; Brandon has some taste. But he was

perfectly sensible and intended me to see what he meant."

The girl stood still, trembling with anger and confusion, and Kenwardine

felt sorry for her. She was worse hurt than he had expected, but she

would rally.

"But he couldn't have been robbed while he was with us," she said with an

effort, trying to understand Dick's point of view. "He hadn't an

overcoat, so the plans must have been in the pocket of his uniform, and

nobody except myself was near him."

She stopped with a gasp as she remembered how she had slipped and seized

Dick. In doing so her hand had caught his pocket. Everything was plain

now, and for a few moments she felt overwhelmed. Her face blanched, but

her eyes were hard and very bright.

Kenwardine left her, feeling that Brandon would have cause to regret his

rashness if he ever attempted to renew her acquaintance, and Clare sat

down and tried to conquer her anger. This was difficult, because she had

received an intolerable insult. Brandon thought her a thief! It was plain

that he did so, because the change in his manner bore out all her father

had said, and there was no other explanation. Then she blushed with shame

as she realized that from his point of view her unconventional behavior

warranted his suspicions. She had asked him to come into the garden and

had written him a note! This was horribly foolish and she must pay for

it, but she had been mistaken about his character.

She had, as a rule, avoided the men she met at her father's house and had

shrunk with frank repugnance from one or two, but Brandon had seemed

different. Then he had watched for her when he was ill and she had seen

his heavy eyes get brighter when she came into the room. Now, however,

she understood him better. She had some beauty and he had been satisfied

with her physical attractiveness, although he thought her a thief. This

was worse than the coarse admiration of the men she had feared. It was

unthinkably humiliating, but her anger helped her to bear the blow. After

all, she was fortunate in finding out what Brandon was, since it might

have been worse had the knowledge come later. There was a sting in this

that rankled, but she could banish him from her thoughts now.