Suddenly Soolsby's voice rose angrily.

Luke Claridge seemed so remorseless and unyielding, so set in his vanity and self-will! Soolsby misread the rigid look in the face, the pale sternness.

He did not know that there had suddenly come upon Luke Claridge the full consciousness of an agonising truth--that all he had done where David was concerned had been a mistake.

The hard look, the sternness, were the signals of a soul challenging itself.
"Ay, you've had your own will," cried Soolsby mercilessly.

"You've said to God A'mighty that He wasn't able to work out to a good end what He'd let happen; and so you'd do His work for Him.