'Jim called me to come....' 'Do you expect me to believe that?' He repeated Aaron Wade's question almost word for word. 'I saw you talking to Ben Wade this afternoon when I followed you up the hill. I don't doubt he made an efficient town crier,' he said sarcastically. 'I said nothing to Ben about the dam,' she denied hotly. 'He'll tell you what we were talking about when we saw one another by the beck.' She turned to the youth who stood near them, listening to the exchange with a sly grin on his face. 'You know I said nothing about the possibility of a reservoir being built here,' she appealed to him. 'Who's to say what we talked about by the beck?' Ben's black eyes roved insolently over her flushed face. 'There was only you and me to hear, and the dogs,' he gave a wink and his grin broadened, and Marion stared at him furiously. She should have known better than to appeal to him, his nature was as spiteful as his mother's. 'We all know about it now anyway,' he added maliciously, 'so that's that.' 'So now you know.' Reeve leaned against the bar and surveyed the room.
