Mr.Beard and I alive--but what a future! What a dastardly thing to bring all this about!" Britz, eagerly drinking in her words, watched her in a fever of expectancy.

But she checked her outburst before the fatal revelation for which he hoped, received utterance.

With a new shock she recalled his presence, and, as if afraid of having incriminated herself, or someone whom she wanted to shield, walked hastily toward the door.
"Please escort me to the automobile," she pleaded.
Britz recognized the futility of trying to obtain further admissions from a woman in her distressful state of mind.

The fear that had seized her would prove a padlock on her lips.

So he permitted her to lean heavily on his arm while she passed through the door and descended the steps to the street.