The other laughed.
'It is incredible,' he said.
'I assure you it's true. They have been married six months, and she is
still only his wife in name. The superstitious through all the ages have
believed in the power of virginity, and the Church has made use of the
idea for its own ends. The man uses her simply as a mascot.'
The men laughed, and their conversation proceeded so grossly that Susie's
cheeks burned. But what she had heard made her look at Margaret more
closely still. She was radiant. Susie could not deny that something had
come to her that gave a new, enigmatic savour to her beauty. She was
dressed more gorgeously than Susie's fastidious taste would have
permitted; and her diamonds, splendid in themselves, were too magnificent
for the occasion. At last, sweeping up the money, Haddo touched her on
the shoulder, and she rose. Behind her was standing a painted woman of
notorious disreputability. Susie was astonished to see Margaret smile and
nod as she passed her.
Susie learnt that the Haddos had a suite of rooms at the most expensive
of the hotels.
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