"You would be glad to save Irene from such a shame?"
Piers had not yet seen the scandal from this point of view. It came
upon him with a shock, and he stood speechless.
"My husband hates them," pursued Mrs. Hannaford, "and you don't know
what _his_ hatred means. Just for that alone, he will do his worst
against me--hoping to throw disgrace on the Derwents."
"I doubt very much," said Piers, who had been thinking hard,
"whether, in any event, this would affect the Derwents in people's
opinion."
"You don't think so? But do you know Arnold Jacks? I feel sure he is
the kind of man who would resent bitterly such a thing as this. He
is very proud--proud in just that kind of way--do you
understand? Oh, I know it would make trouble between him and Irene."
"In that case," Piers began vehemently, and at once checked himself.
"What were you going to say?"
"Nothing that could help us."
When he raised his eyes again, Mrs. Hannaford was gazing at him with
pitiful entreaty.
"For _her_ sake," she said, in a low, shaken voice, "you will try to
do something?"
"If only I can!"
"Yes! I know you! You are good and generous--It ought surely to be
possible to stop this before it gets talked about? If I were guilty,
it would be different. But I have done no wrong; I have only been
weak and foolish. I thought of going straight to my brother, but
there is the dreadful thought that he might not believe me.
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