He went over this again and again, and with this I had to leave him.
I found Joe in his office. He rose abruptly when I came in, and reached for his hat.
"Let's go out for a walk," he said. Down in the street he turned on me: "Sue has just 'phoned me you were there. She thought you were going to help her, Bill, she thought that you'd stand by her. She didn't get any sleep last night--she's been through hell with that father of hers----"
"Oh, I've been all through Sue's sufferings, Joe. Don't give me any more of that."
"No. But to be good and brutally frank about it, what she suffers just now doesn't count with me. It's what her whole life may be with you."
"That's not exactly your business, is it?"
"I know that in spite of all her talk and the way she acts and honestly feels whenever she's with you," I replied, "Sue wants to hang on to her home and us. She isn't the heroic kind. She can't just follow along with you and leave all this she's used to."
"Perhaps she will and perhaps she won't. How do you know? You want to know, don't you? You want her to be happy?"
"No, that's not what I want most. Being happy isn't the only thing----"
"Then tell her so. That's all I ask. I'll tell you what I've come for, Joe. You've always been more honest, more painfully blunt and open than any man I've ever known. Be that way now with Sue. Give her the plainest, hardest picture you can of the life you're getting her into."
"You haven't! If you want to know what you've done I can tell you. You've painted up this life of yours--and all these things you believe in--with power enough and smash enough to knock holes through all I believe in myself. And I'm stronger than Sue--you've done more to her. What I ask of you now is to drop all the fire and punch of your dreams, and line out the cold facts of your life on its personal side--what it's going to be. I'll help draw it out by asking you questions."
"What's the use of that? I know it won't change her!"
"Maybe it won't. But if it won't, at least it'll make my father give up. Can't you see? If you and I together--I asking and you answering--paint your life the way it's to be, and she says, 'Good, that's what I want'--he'll feel she's so far away from him then that he'll throw up his hands and let her go. He can rest then, we can help him then--Eleanore and I can--it may save the last years of his life. And Sue will be free to come to you."