Here, then, was the most obvious opportunity--a man in trouble who had not deserved the bitter bad luck which had come to him.

Even old Mere Langlois in the market-place at Vilray had admitted that, and had said the same later on in Virginie's home.
For an instant Jean Jacques was fascinated by the sudden prospect which opened out before him.

If he asked her, this woman would probably loan him five thousand dollars--and she had mentioned nothing about security! "What security do you want ?" he asked in a husky voice.
"Security?
I don't understand about that," she replied.

"I'd not offer you the money if I didn't think you were an honest man, and an honest man would pay me back.

A dishonest man wouldn't pay me back, security or no security." "He'd have to pay you back if the security was right to start with," Jean Jacques insisted.