“But that's every cent I have in the world.”
Why it's great
It states total loss in the plainest words, which makes the blow land harder.
Register
Neutral
Use it yourself
That treatment cost every cent I had in the world.
00:00 / 03:35
00:00 / 03:35
Robert Learns What the Letter Cost, Explained
The Letter · 1940
Chapter 13 of 15 · 3'35"
Robert is still planning his Sumatra estate when Howard finally tells him the costs—including the $10,000 paid for Leslie's letter. Robert is stunned: "But that's every cent I have in the world." The question of what the letter contained starts to come apart from Leslie's story, and Robert insists on seeing it.
Key moments
Start here, then watch the full scene- 0:55–2:11
Howard Reveals the Cost of the Letter
76s - 2:36–3:33
Robert Learns Buying the Letter Was a Crime
57s
Robert Learns What the Letter Cost, explained
What happens
Howard, Leslie and Robert talk over Robert's plans to buy the Sumatra estate. Howard warns that the case has left heavy costs, then names the main one: the $10,000 he paid to buy back Leslie's letter. Robert is shocked, asks why the letter wasn't simply shown to the jury, and begins to doubt Leslie's story.
What's really going on
The cost is not money but trust. Howard reveals that he paid $10,000—almost exactly Robert's savings—to keep the letter away from the courtroom, and Robert's reaction is not anger but disbelief: "But that's every cent I have in the world." From there the scene becomes an interrogation. Robert recalls the gun he was already buying and asks why Leslie would order him another one; her "How should I know you were going to buy a gun?" meets his "Because I told you." Howard admits the purchase was a crime that could get him disbarred, so the stakes are no longer only Leslie's. When Robert demands the letter and says "I've got to pay $10,000 for that letter, and by heaven, I'm going to see it," the marriage and the cover-up are both on the line.
Key lines & what they mean
- “But that's every cent I have in the world.”
- Robert's reaction to the $10,000: the money paid to hide the letter was his entire savings.
- “Buying that letter was a criminal offense, wasn't it?”
- Robert states plainly that the payment to suppress evidence was illegal, which puts Howard at risk too.
- “It's not your letter or mine, Bob.”
- Leslie refuses to hand the letter over, insisting it belongs to neither of them.
- “It would break his heart.”
- Leslie says the truth would devastate Robert, her reason for keeping the letter from him.
- “Look here, Bob. I don't want to throw cold water on your plans, but aren't you forgetting certain financial obligations?”
- Howard interrupts Robert's excitement to point out that the trial has left debts that must be paid first.
Theme
- Trust — Robert's suspicion grows as Leslie's gun story fails to explain a letter he was never meant to see.
- Money — The $10,000 for the letter turns out to be Robert's entire savings, making the cover-up a family cost.
What this chapter teaches
Teaching points
Review right after watchingMy level2/6
A1–C2 is the CEFR scale. Cards above the level you pick fade, and playback will not auto-pause on them.
Language points
Click a card to jump to its moment in the videoGolden lines
A great line in its own right — why and how to use it“Buying that letter was a criminal offense, wasn't it?”
Why it's great
A soft tag question names the crime and quietly puts the friend on the spot.
Register
Neutral
Use it yourself
Copying that file was a criminal offense, wasn't it?
“It's not your letter or mine, Bob.”
Why it's great
It hands ownership back to the person who wrote the letter and refuses to share the blame.
Register
Neutral
Use it yourself
It's not your mistake or mine, so stop apologising.
“It would break his heart.”
Why it's great
Five plain words make the choice feel like cruelty rather than logic.
Register
Neutral
Use it yourself
Telling him now would break his heart.
“Look here, Bob. I don't want to throw cold water on your plans, but aren't you forgetting certain financial obligations?”
Why it's great
It claims not to spoil the mood and then does exactly that with one pointed question.
Register
Neutral
Use it yourself
I don't want to throw cold water on the idea, but we have no budget.
Up next · 14in love withThe scene: Leslie Confesses Loving HammondTakeaways
What you walk away with- Howard bills friendship while insisting he is not billing it.
- Bob's awakening comes when the price is named, not before.
- Suppress is the word that turns a favour into an offence.
People also search
Questions, then the linesWhy does Howard reveal the cost of the letter to Robert?
The trial's expenses have to be settled before Robert can fund the estate, and the $10,000 for the letter is the largest item.
Why didn't Howard let the letter go to the jury?
He says he "didn't dare": showing the letter would have raised suspicions about why Leslie wrote it, so suppressing it seemed necessary for an acquittal.
Why is Robert suspicious of Leslie's gun story?
He had already told her he was buying a gun from Cameron, so the idea that she arranged to buy him one through Hammond doesn't add up to him.
What crime does Howard admit to?
He admits that buying the letter was a criminal offense and that he might be disbarred for it.
Why won't Leslie show Robert the letter?
She says it is not his letter or hers, and she is also trying to spare him the truth it contains.