It places me, Robert, in a very difficult position." "I can quite see that," answered Pettifer with a grim smile.

"It's really the only consoling element in the whole business.

You can't refuse your consent without looking a fool and you can't give it while you are in any doubt as to Mrs.Ballantyne's innocence." Mr.Hazlewood was not, however, quite prepared to accept that definition of his position.
"You don't exhaust the possibilities, Robert," he said.

"I can quite well refuse my consent and publicly refuse it if there are reasonable grounds for believing that there was in that trial a grave miscarriage of justice." Mr.Pettifer looked sharply at his companion.

The voice no less than the words fixed his attention.