She would not be ignored. She began by firing questions at him about the war, where he had been located, what were his rank and duties. Of course, she was fairly up on these things, as she had been going around with a lot of soldiers and sailors, playing at work in canteens, just naturally having a good time playing at war, for she had never been known to do any real work in her life and well knew how to slip out of anything useful, while making it appear that she was very active and quite necessary to any outfit with which she chose to associate herself.

At first Madison’s answers were exceedingly brief, but the girl refused to let him evade anything she really wanted to know, until her father caught a phrase from the young man’s words and chimed in with his questions, and at last they got him telling of some of his experiences.

Mr. Chalmers was a sharp man and knew how to ask questions, knew the names of the big men in the army and navy, knew the location of the strategic points where notable fighting had been going on, and drew out his new man to tell his experiences. Not that Madison wanted to bring himself forward in any way, but the questions were so worded that if he replied at all, he must make it apparent that these things had happened to him. And at last they got him to talking, with a fire of memory in his eyes. And Paige Madison could talk when he wanted to. He could mingle facts with pathos and tragedy and tenderness, until he had the whole table listening while he quietly told of happenings that were most dramatic, and if it had not been for Chalmers’s questions interspersed throughout—“And were you there, Madison? Did you see that yourself?”—nobody would have known that the young man had ever been near.

For once Reva was silenced. She sat watching the young man, with astonishment on her face. He was good looking, of course, and that was what had appealed to her in him at first, but he didn’t respond in the least to her, and she couldn’t quite make it out. She set her vivid red lips determinedly. He wasn’t going to get away with this lofty ignoring business. She would fix him somehow so that he would have to come crawling at her feet, demanding her attention. She would teach him that she was not one to be ignored. She, an heiress, daughter of one of the most influential men in town. She might have to change her tactics perhaps, but she would get him. She would teach him what he had done and punish him well.

Her jealous eyes watched him sharply as he talked. It was incredible, that he looked so young, and yet when he was talking he seemed so mature.

But suddenly Paige became aware of the interest his story was creating at the table. Even the haughty Mrs. Chalmers had fixed her cold eyes on the young man’s face as if she had seen him for the first time and was taking account of him most carefully. The young man relapsed into a shy silence, and his innermost heart told him that he was out of his natural sphere. Then, try as they would, they could not get him started again on any thrilling adventures.

But the deed was done. The mother and daughter were intrigued, and determined each within herself to cultivate this brilliant young man.

Quite willingly, Paige withdrew into the library with his new boss and entered into matters of business, matters that had been carefully planned beforehand with the intent to impress the young man with the benevolent character and spiritual-mindedness of his new employer. It was quite necessary, if they were to go on together in the business relations that the Chalmers outfit had planned, that the young man should be deeply impressed with the Christian character of the head of the firm. And this was especially the case since the morning interview in which Madison had objected to certain phraseology in the contracts given him to sign. If there were any questions in the mind of young Madison on such a score, he would not be the asset to the firm that they had expected him to be. Of course, the young man had been away overseas and might have changed, but before he went he was known in the vicinity to be most exemplary, and his people were careful, conscientious Christians. It was most important to Mr. Chalmers that his firm should be known as most honorable in every way, so it behooved him to find out thoroughly all about the young man. And the evening’s conversation had pleased him well.