“And those are?” asked Harris.

“That you forget my insignificant part in the purchase of Miss Gorham’s stock,” he replied.  “It is not of great concern to me, and you are perfectly free to communicate it to Mr. Gorham if you choose; but in view of certain things which have occurred since, I should be glad to have the matter dropped if agreeable to you.”

“That’s easy enough,” Brady remarked, showing signs of relief.  “Is that all?”

“Yes,” Covington replied; “I am not as avaricious as you are in exacting my pound of flesh.  Now, one other thing in order to give good measure:  it may interest you to know that Mr. Gorham went over the contract with me yesterday in detail, and he is going to accept it as it stands, paying you the price you named.”

“You saw what it stipulated, Covington?  It covers everything just as we turn it over.  He can find out all in good time what three lines ain’t included, and also the price his precious Companies will have to pay for them.”

“He appeared to be perfectly satisfied,” Covington continued, calmly.  “I should judge that everything was all right.”

“Then he’s been wastin’ time,” growled Brady, “and he can have all the pink teas he wants with Littleton and Graham.  We directors have the authority, anyhow; nobody could stop us.  Who the devil is Gorham to dictate to me?  He thinks he’s the whole show, he does.  It makes me sick to see him swellin’ around with that girl wife of his.  She’s a stunner all right, and I don’t blame him; but who the devil is she?  Somebody’s divorced wife, ain’t she, Covington?  Does anybody know anything about her?  He ain’t so much.”  He took out his watch and looked at it mechanically.  “I guess I’m gettin’ old to have these nervous spells—­it ain’t like me.”

Covington bade them good-morning and returned to his office fairly well satisfied.  The danger of the present situation had been minimized.  He felt sure that Alice would not go out of her way to acquaint her father with the name of the stock by which her property would be handsomely increased, and he knew that Gorham’s mind was too full of other matters to press her for the details unless she volunteered them.  But he must be more discreet, this he realized.  If the matter could be dropped here, he would have learned a useful lesson; and then, too, the interview had not been without a suggestion which was well worth following up.  It occurred to Covington, in view of Brady’s remark, that he had been unpardonably obtuse in neglecting to acquaint himself with the details of Mrs. Gorham’s early life.  He knew vaguely that she had been the victim of unpleasant experiences before her present marriage, but what they were he had never learned.  There might be something in them which it would be to his advantage to know, and it could surely do no harm to make a quiet investigation.