The Last Woman

Morton turned his face away from her, in order to conceal the smile of amusement in which he indulged himself, and he replied, with apparent carelessness: "My big car was out of commission, temporarily. I happened to see Melvin, and he agreed to take Miss Houston and her sister to Cedarcrest, for me."

"Oh, indeed! What has happened to your White Steamer? It was only the other day that you told me how proud you were of it because it never got out of order."

He turned his face toward her and replied slowly and with distinctness: "I won't lie to you about it, Patricia; that wouldn't be fair. I put the car out of commission, myself; or, rather, it was done by my order, because I wanted to take this ride alone with you."

"You should have told me that before we started," she said to him.

"Why? Would it have made any difference in your going?"

"Most certainly it would."

"Do you mean that you would have declined to come with me?"

"I do."

"But why?"

"Chiefly, because I do not approve of plots and schemes, in any form. Had you asked me, frankly and openly, to drive to Cedarcrest with you, I should have felt no hesitation in accepting; as it is, you have given offense, Mr. Morton."

"So much so that you won't even call me Dick?" he said, with a light laugh that was more forced than real.

"Yes. You have not proven yourself quite the friend I hoped you would be. Friends don't plot against each other."

"Shall I turn the car about and take you home?" he asked shortly, with tightening lips, angered unreasonably by the attitude she had assumed.

"No; you may take me to our destination, Cedarcrest."

They drove on in silence for a considerable time after that, and, as soon as they were in the country, on less-frequented roads, Morton increased the speed of his roadster until they were flying along the highway in utter and absolute defiance of the statutes. When they presently arrived at a turn within a few miles of their destination, a turn that would have taken them directly to the house they sought, Morton did not move the steering-wheel of the car, but kept on, straight ahead, and with ever increasing speed.

Patricia knew the road very well indeed; she had been over it many times, and now she called out to her companion: "You have taken the wrong road. You should have gone around that last turn."

Morton did not reply, or attempt to do so. He seemed not to have heard her.