"Well," he said, "the next thing is to get you away from this place.
We've got to stage the drama carefully, I can tell you."
"I can go at once."
"Well; you had better go to New York;--what will you do with your
youngster?" he interrupted himself. "Leave him on Dr. Lavendar's
doorstep, I suppose?"
"My youngster?" she repeated. "Do you mean David?"
Mr. Pryor nodded absently, he was not interested in David.
"Why," Helena said breathlessly, "you didn't suppose I was going to
leave David?"
At which, in spite of his preoccupation, Pryor laughed outright. "My
dear Helena, even you can hardly be so foolish as to suppose that you
could take David with you?"
She sat looking at him, blankly, "Not take David! Why, you surely
didn't think that I would give up David?"
"My dear," said Lloyd Pryor, "you will either give him up, or you will
give me up."
"And you don't care which!" she burst out passionately.
He gave her a deadly look. "I do care which."
And at that she blenched but clung doggedly to his promise. "You must
marry me!"
"There is no must about it. I will. I have told you so. But I did
not suppose it was necessary to make your giving up David a condition.
Not that I mean to turn the young man out, I'm sure. Only, I decline
to take him in. But, good Heavens, Helena," he added, in perfectly
genuine astonishment, "it isn't possible that you seriously
contemplated keeping him? Will you please consider the effect upon the
domestic circle of a very natural reference on his part, to your
brother? You might as well take your servants along with you--or
your Old Chester doctor! Really, my dear Nelly," he ended banteringly,
"I should have supposed that even you would have had more sense."
Helena grew slowly very white. She felt as if caught in a trap; and
yet the amused surprise in Lloyd Pryor's face was honest enough, and
perfectly friendly. "I cannot leave David here," she said faintly. And
as terror and despair and dumb determination began to look out of her
eyes, the man beside her grew gayly sympathetic.
"I perfectly understand how you feel, He is a nice little chap. But,
of course, you see it would be impossible?"
"I can't give him up."
"I wouldn't," he said amiably. "You can go away from Old Chester--of
course you must do that--and take him with you. And I will come and
see you as often as I can."