"
"But did you ask her?"
"Ask her? No. Can't you see that there was
no reason why I should ask her? I was sure. And
being sure of it, naturally I didn't talk about it to
her. You can understand that I wouldn't, can't
you? In fact, I never mentioned you to her. She
never mentioned you to me."
"You must have mistaken her, Tom."
"I don't think it's possible, Dave," said the
colonel. "You can mistake words and explanations
a good deal easier than you can mistake an atmos-
phere. No, Dave, I tell you that there's something
odd about it--married or not, Lucy didn't BELIEVE
herself married the last time I saw her."
"But she MUST have known," says the doctor,
as much to himself as to the colonel. "She MUST
have known." Any one could of told by the way
he said it that he wasn't lying. I could see that
Colonel Tom believed in him, too. They was both
sicking their intellects onto the job of figgering out
how it was Lucy didn't know. Finally the doctor
says very thoughtful:
"Whatever became of Prentiss McMakin, Tom?"
"Dead," says Colonel Tom, "quite a while ago."
"H-m," says the doctor, still thinking hard.
And then looks at Colonel Tom like they was an
idea in his head. Which he don't speak her out.
But Colonel Tom seems to understand.
"Yes," he says, nodding his head.
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