He appealed to her with a helpless gesture of his hands.
"You did know. You were warned. You were told not to shut her up. And
you did shut her up. You can't blame her if she got away. You flung
her to Jim Greatorex. There wasn't anybody who cared for her but him."
"Cared for her!" He snarled his disgust.
"Yes. Cared for her. You think that's horrible of her--that she should
have gone to him--and yet you want to tie her to him when she's afraid
of him. And I think it's horrible of you."
"She must marry him." Mary spoke again. "She's brought it on herself,
Gwenda."
"She hasn't brought it on herself. And she shan't marry him."
"I'm afraid she'll have to," Rowcliffe said.
"She won't have to if I take her away somewhere and look after her. I
mean to do it. I'll work for her. I'll take care of the child."
"Oh, you--_you----!_" The Vicar waved her away with a frantic flapping
of his hands.
He turned to his son-in-law.
"Rowcliffe--I beg you--will you use your influence?"
"I have none."
That drew her. "Steven--help me--can't you see how terrible it is if
she's afraid of him?"
"But _is_ she?"
He looked at her with his miserable eyes, then turned them from her,
considering gravely what she had said. It was then, while Rowcliffe
was considering it, that the garden gate opened violently and fell to.
They waited for the sound of the front door bell.
Instead of it they heard two doors open and Ally's voice calling to
Greatorex in the hall.
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