if I told Peter, he would kill the beast. And then the ice--and this
night--" She choked.

Blake's eyes, gimleting to her soul, were shot with a sudden fire as he,
too, leaned a little over the table. But his voice was unemotional as
rock. It merely stated a fact. "That's why Captain Rydal allowed himself
to be frozen in," he said. "He had plenty of time to get into the open
channels, Mrs. Keith. But he wanted you. And to get you he knew he would
have to lay over. And if he laid over, he knew that he would get you, for
many things may happen in an arctic night. It shows the depth of the
man's feelings, doesn't it? He is sacrificing a great deal to possess
you, losing a great deal of time, and money, and all that. And when your
husband dies--"

Her clenched little fist struck the table. "He won't die, I tell you! Why
do you say that?"

"Because--Rydal says he is going to die."

"Rydal--lies. Peter had a fall, and it hurt his spine so that his legs
are paralyzed. But I know what it is. If he could get away from that ship
and could have a doctor, he would be well again in two or three months."

"But Rydal says he is going to die."

There was no mistaking the significance of Blake's words this time. Her
eyes filled with sudden horror. Then they flashed with the blue fire
again. "So--he has told you? Well, he told me the same thing today. He
didn't intend to, of course. But he was half mad, and he had been
drinking. He has given me twenty-four hours."