For an instant I failed to realize their significance, and then the recollection of my own engagement came swiftly back.

At first the memory was a disgust; the very presence of the girl, and her tale of struggle, made me realize the sordidness of this plot in which I was involved.

Somehow it struck me then as a dirty, underhanded scheme.
Yet, as I reviewed the details, this conception largely vanished.

We were defrauding no one, merely protecting a man helpless to protect himself, backed by legal advice, as well as by the desire of the administrators of the will.

The comparatively large sum of money offered me for the service was not excessive considering the amount involved, or the way in which I physically resembled the party represented.