At last she spoke.
But in those moments of reflection her determination had apparently
become more fixed than ever.
Either she feared to confess lest she should imperil her father, or else
she became seized with a sense of shame that would not allow her to
condemn herself.
"No," she said, in a firm voice, "I have already told you sufficient,
Mr Leaf. My private affairs cannot in the least interest you."
My heart sank within me, for I had hoped that she would reveal to me the
truth. I was fighting in the dark an enemy whose true strength I could
not gauge. The slightest ray of light would be of enormous advantage to
me, yet she steadily withheld it, even though she lived in hourly
danger, knowing not when, by force of circumstances, she might be driven
to the last desperate step.
She was a woman of strong character, to say the least, although so
sweet, graceful and altogether charming.