I stood reflecting for a minute,
and then requested, "Please stay where you are for a moment." Leaving
her, I went over to Fred.
"Mr. Cullen," I said, "Miss Cullen, rather than be searched, has
acknowledged that she has the letters, and says that if we men will go
into the hut she'll get them for me."
He rose at once. "I told my father not to drag her in," he muttered,
sadly. "I don't care about myself, Mr. Gordon, but can't you keep her
out of it? She's as innocent of any real wrong as the day she was
born."
"I'll do everything in my power," I promised. Then he and Hance went
into the cabin, and I walked back to the culprit.
"Miss Cullen," I said gravely, "you have those letters, and must give
them to me."
"But I told you--" she began.
To spare her a second untruth, I interrupted her by saying, "I trapped
your brother into acknowledging that you have them."
"You must have misunderstood him," she replied, calmly, "or else he
didn't know that the arrangement was changed."
Her steadiness rather shook my conviction, but I said, "You must give
me those letters, or I must search you."
"You never would!" she cried, rising and looking me in the face.
On impulse I tried a big bluff. I took hold of the lapel of her waist,
intending to undo just one button. I let go in fright when I found
there was no button--only an awful complication of hooks or some
other feminine method for keeping things together--and I grew red and
trembled thinking what might have happened had I, by bad luck, made
anything come undone.
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