If he prosecuted Hood, all the circumstances of the case would inevitably come out; Emily had friends in Dunfield, and if her father's guilt were once disclosed, there would be no reason for her concealment of what had happened; facts like these put forward in mitigation of punishment would supply the town with a fearful subject of comment--nay, was he safe from the clutch of the law?
Of these things he had not troubled to think, so assured was he that the mere threat would suffice.

From his present point of view it was easy enough to see that the plot had been a wretched piece of bungling; in failing of its end it became the project of a simpleton.

Had the girl herself been cool enough to see this?
Did she defy him in knowledge of the weakness of his position?
Probably not; in that case she would have spoken differently she had granted, and clearly with sincerity, his power to do what he threatened.

And then the fact remained that he could injure Hood irremediably by means short of criminal proceedings.

Emily--his reasoning was accurate enough--had not been careful to distinguish between modes of injury, where each meant ruin.
What he dared to do, he would.