Page:The Whisper on the Stair by Lyon Mearson (1924).djvu/170



that long afternoon, between longing for a drink and frowning upon the clamor of his stomach, Val pondered the matter at issue. Would Teck actually carry out his threats? Was he bluffing? What would he really do when he became convinced that Val would not make the desired promises?

Everything hinged on that. If Teck was bluffing—and Val was a little inclined to the belief that he was, it would be humiliating to Val not to call that bluff. If, on the other hand, he was in deadly earnest, Val stood to lose his life for a theory—the theory that Jessica Pomeroy wanted him to assist her—the theory that, perhaps, he would personally prove interesting enough to her to cause her to feel toward him the affection he already felt toward her. In other words, it was theoretically possible, Val thought, that he could teach her to love him.

If he was wrong it was not of consequence at this moment, anyway, because life without her—he already knew—would not be worth the effort; it would simply be a waste of good years, empty and tasteless. If he promised what Ignace Teck wished him to promise, he would have to step out of her life for good; he would be bound, in honor, not to approach her again.

But would he really be bound? Val turned this over in his mind for a long time. Is a man bound by a Rh