He said
to his wife with a solemnity I can easily imagine "You ought to undertake
that task, my dear. You have known his wife after all. That's something
at any rate." On the other hand the fear of exposing Mrs. Fyne to some
nasty rebuff worried him exceedingly. Mrs. Fyne on her side gave way to
despondency. Success seemed impossible. Here was a woman for more than
five years in charge of the girl and apparently enjoying the complete
confidence of the father. What, that would be effective, could one say,
without proofs, without . . . This Mr. de Barral must be, Mrs. Fyne
pronounced, either a very stupid or a downright bad man, to neglect his
child so.
You will notice that perhaps because of Fyne's solemn view of our
transient life and Mrs. Fyne's natural capacity for responsibility, it
had never occurred to them that the simplest way out of the difficulty
was to do nothing and dismiss the matter as no concern of theirs. Which
in a strict worldly sense it certainly was not. But they spent, Fyne
told me, a most disturbed afternoon, considering the ways and means of
dealing with the danger hanging over the head of the girl out for a ride
(and no doubt enjoying herself) with an abominable scamp.
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