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diff --git a/57312-0.txt b/57312-0.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..569030f --- /dev/null +++ b/57312-0.txt @@ -0,0 +1,11488 @@ +*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 57312 *** + + + + + + + + + + + + + + +Page Scan Source: Google Books + https://books.google.com/books?id=DMgdAAAAMAAJ&pg + (The New York Public Library) + + + + + + +[Illustration: frontcover] + + + + + + +THE NETHER MILLSTONE + + + + + + +[Illustration: She came slowly down the steps and stood between the two +men (Page 32.) _Frontispiece_] + + + + + + +THE NETHER MILLSTONE + + + +BY +FRED M. WHITE +AUTHOR OF +"THE SLAVE OF SILENCE," "THE CRIMSON BLIND," +"THE WEIGHT OF THE CROWN," ETC. + + +_ILLUSTRATED_ + + + +BOSTON +LITTLE, BROWN, AND COMPANY +1907 + + + + + + +Copyright, 1905, +By WARD, LOCK, AND COMPANY. +Copyright, 1907, +BY LITTLE, BROWN, AND COMPANY. +--------------------- +_All Rights Reserved_ + + + +Published September 1907 + + + +Printers +S. J. Parkhill & Co., Boston, U.S.A. + + + + + + +CONTENTS + +CHAPTER + I. "The Caste of Vere de Vere." + II. Dashwood Hall. + III. Horace Mayfield. + IV. A Leaf from the Past. + V. The Sacrifice. + VI. A Cruel Misunderstanding. + VII. The Only Way. + VIII. Found! + IX. The Parting Guest. + X. Skin Deep. + XI. The Dowager Lady Dashwood. + XII. Lady Dashwood Sees a Ghost. + XIII. Desecration! + XIV. A Fierce Temptation. + XV. Not Quite Too Late. + XVI. The Unfinished Word. + XVII. Breathing Time. + XVIII. A Flaming Sword. + XIX. A Guardian Angel. + XX. Half Told. + XXI. Vincent Dashwood. + XXII. Who Did It? + XXIII. The Silver Clue. + XXIV. A Fresh Calamity. + XXV. Pride or Prejudice. + XXVI. In Reckless Mood. + XXVII. A Warning. + XXVIII. Moral Force. + XXIX. Strategy. + XXX. The Heir of the House. + XXXI. Under Which Lord? + XXXII. Must This Thing Be? + XXXIII. A Rebel Against Fate. + XXXIV. Mistress Of Herself. + XXXV. A Friend in Need. + XXXVI. Connie Colam. + XXXVII. The Unexpected Happens. + XXXVIII. The Mystery Deepens. + XXXIX. Homeless. + XL. In Peril. + XLI. The Lesson of Adversity. + XLII. The Courage of Despair. + XLIII. Getting Nearer. + XLIV. The Dreary Way. + XLV. The Walls of Pride. + XLVI. The Head of the House. + XLVII. "How Long, How Long!" + XLVIII. Face To Face! + XLIX. A Bolt From the Blue. + L. Hard Put To It. + LI. Cold Comfort. + LII. The Spider's Web. + LIII. The Web Tightens. + LIV. "Eyes Clearer Grown----" + LV. Not Dead. + LVI. Found! + LVII. A Clean Breast Of It. + LVIII. "The King is Dead--" + LIX. "Long Live the King!" + LX. Open Confession. + + + + + + +LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS + +_Page_ 32 (_Frontispiece_). "She came slowly down the steps and stood +between the two men." + +_Page_ 15. "She playfully asked him not to be too long." + +_Page_ 272. "Under the shade of a tree Mary laid down and closed her +weary eyes." + +_Page_ 397. "He had Mary's hand in his." + + + + + + +THE NETHER MILLSTONE + + + + +CHAPTER I. +"THE CASTE OF VERE DE VERE" + + +There were tears in the girl's eyes--tears of futile anger and +despair. The danger was so great, and yet safety was so near. If only +the black horse would stumble or swerve, if only she could work the +bit into that iron mouth and bring him to a standstill altogether. Her +gloves were cut to ribands now; the blue veins stood out on the +slender white wrists. + +And still the horse flew on down the rocky path leading to the +lych-gate. He would charge through the gate into the green old +churchyard beyond, but no longer with his rider fighting for life on +his back. The arch of the lych-gate would sweep her from the saddle +with a blow that would crush the life out of her. Mary Dashwood could +see that plainly enough; she knew that she had only a few more minutes +to live. + +She set her teeth and blinked the welling tears from her proud blue +eyes. She was not afraid--no Dashwood was ever afraid--but the pity of +it! She saw the great beeches rising on either side of the path, she +saw the blue sky beyond, the song of the birds came to her ears. And +she was only twenty-two, and life was very dear to her. + +The moment was coming ever nearer. The black horse was thundering +along the straight downward path; the lych-gate was in sight. Mary +discarded the idea of throwing herself from the saddle; she would have +only been dashed to pieces on the rocks on either side of the road. +She had been warned, too, not to take the black horse. She bent low to +escape an overhanging bough; her hat was swept away; the shining +chestnut hair began to stream from her shapely head. + +There was a crackling of sticks in the wood on the right; surely, a +hundred yards or so ahead, a face looked over the high fence, the +figure of a man was holding on to the overhanging bough of an oak +tree. Mary Dashwood wondered if the man realised her danger. Perhaps +he did, for he crooked a leg over the bough and hung arms downward +over the roadway. He was saying something in a smooth, firm voice. + +"Pull to the side of the road," said the voice. It almost sounded like +a command. "Drop the reins and clear your stirrup as you near me. And +have no fear." + +The big horse thundered on. Despite her peril, Mary did not fail +to notice how strong and brown and capable the stranger's hands +looked. . . . It was all done so quickly and easily as to rob the +episode of romantic danger--two hands, warm and tender, and yet firm +as a steel trap, grasped the girl's slender wrists, she was floated +lightly from the saddle, and in the next instant she was swaying +dizzily on her feet in the road. The pride and courage of the +Dashwoods availed nothing now--it was but a mere woman who fell almost +fainting by the roadside. + +She opened her eyes presently to the knowledge that a strong arm was +supporting her. A bright blush mounted to her proud, beautiful face. +The colour deepened as she saw the look, half admiration, half +amusement, on the face of her rescuer. + +"Mr. Darnley," she stammered. "I--I hardly expected to see you here. A +little over two years ago, in Paris, you saved my life before." + +"It is good to know that you have not forgotten it," Ralph Darnley +murmured. "And yet the coincidence is not so strange as it seems. I +did not come to these parts moved by any unaccountable impulse--I +simply had business here. And I was told that a walk through the park +would repay me for my trouble. As I was making a start out, through a +copse I saw your predicament and hastened to your assistance. A handy +tree did the rest. The only strange part of the affair is that you +should be here, too." + +"Nothing strange about that," the girl smiled, "seeing that the Hall +is my home." + +It was a commonplace statement of facts, and yet the words seemed to +hurt Ralph Darnley as if they had been lashes to sting him. The honest +open brown face paled perceptibly under its tan hue. A dozen emotions +changed in those clear brown eyes. + +"I--I don't quite understand," he remarked. "When we met in Paris two +years ago, Miss Mary Mallory----" + +"Quite so. Mary Dashwood Mallory. But, you see, the head of the family +was alive then. He died nearly two years ago without any children, in +fact, his only son died years ago somewhere abroad--it was a rather +sad story--and my father came into the title and estates. He is Sir +George Dashwood now. You can quite see why he changed his name." + +"Of course. Only you can see that I could not possibly know this. What +a grand old place it is, and what a grand old house! You must have +grown very fond of it." + +"I love it," Mary Dashwood cried. The look of haughty pride had faded +from her face, leaving it refined and beautiful. "I love every stick +and stone of it, it is part of my very life. You see, I have +practically lived here always. As my father was in the Diplomatic +Service, and my mother died young, it was necessary for somebody to +look after me. I spent my childhood here with old Lady Dashwood, who +has now gone to the dower house--such a wonderful old body!" + +But Darnley did not appear to be listening. He made an effort to +recover himself presently. He was like a man who dreams. + +"I can quite appreciate your feelings," he said quietly. "I understand +that the Dashwoods have ruled here for three hundred years. It is a +fine estate; they tell me the heirlooms are almost priceless. And yet +I am sorry." + +The girl looked sharply up at the speaker. + +"Why should you be sorry?" she demanded. + +"Because it is the end of a dream," Darnley said. "I rather gathered +in Paris that your father was poor. The fact levelled things up a +little. It is just possible that you may remember our last evening +together in Paris." + +"I recollect," Mary said, the delicate colour flushing her cheeks +again. "But I thought that we had closed that chapter finally, Mr. +Darnley." + +"No. That chapter can never be closed for me. I loved you from the +first moment that we met, and I shall go on loving you till I die. I +asked you to be my wife, and you refused me. The future mistress of +Dashwood could not stoop to the son of a Californian rancher, though I +happened to be an English gentleman by birth. I hope I took your +refusal quietly, though it was a great blow to me. There can be no +other woman for me, Mary." + +"I am sorry," the girl said, "but see how impossible it is. Perhaps I +am a little old-fashioned, perhaps it is the fault of my bringing up. +That like must mate with like has always been the motto of the +Dashwoods. These new people, with their wealth and noise and +ostentation can never cross the threshold of Dashwood Hall. My father +is fond of finance, but he never dreams of bringing his City friends +here." + +Darnley smiled to himself. He recollected the days in Paris, when +Mary's father had been hand-in-glove with many a dubious French +financier. + +"We are wandering from the point," he said. "In any case your +strictures do not touch me, for I have no money. My poor father left +me comfortably off, as he thought, but my mine of silver is ruined +now, ruined by a firm of City swindlers whom I was fool enough to +regard as honest men. It was a very bad thing for me when I came in +contact with Horace Mayfield." + +It was the girl's turn to start guiltily. The beautiful face flushed +once more. + +"I know Mr. Mayfield," she said. "He is the only one of my father's +business friends who comes here. We make an exception in his favour, +because he is so well connected. Frankly, I do not like him, but I +thought that he-----" + +"That he is a cold-blooded and calculating rascal to the core," +Darnley said. "I trusted him, and he left me almost penniless. Many +people will tell you I am saying no more than what is actually true. +And, because I am poor, I came down here thinking to find a little +something that belonged to my people years ago. And so I met you, +Mary, and discovered that I love you with the same old pure affection, +that will go on burning in my heart till I die. It may strike you as +strange that a poor man should speak to Miss Dashwood, of Dashwood, +like this. Mind you, I am young, and strong, and able, and I shall +come into my kingdom again. And love is worth all the rest; it is +better far than money, or position, or pride of birth. If I could hear +you say that you cared for me now! You are so beautiful; behind all +your pride the woman's heart beats true enough. May God grant that you +meet the right man when the time comes! I would give you up to him +willingly and shake his hand on it. But to think of your being the +wife of some brainless nonentity, of some brutal ruffian who has +nothing but an old title to cover his moral wickedness, why the +thought is unbearable. Mary, I think I could find it in my heart to +kill that man." + +The words came slowly and clear as cut steel. Calm as he was, +Darnley's tones vibrated with passion. He drew the girl towards him, +and laid his hands on her shoulders so that he could look down into +the fathomless lake of her blue eyes. Strange as it was, Mary +Dashwood did not resent that which would have been insolent +familiarity in anybody else. There was something so strong and +dominating about this man; she thrilled with a strange tenderness and +pride in the knowledge that he loved her. True, on his own confession, +he was penniless, but then he treated the loss of his money in a way +that only a strong man could assume. + +"I love you, dear," he said, very gently and tenderly. "I love you, +Mary, and no words could say more. I shall live to see the ice and +pride melt from your heart, I shall live to see the beautiful +womanhood within you blossom like a rose. The day will come when you +will be prouder far to own a good man's heart than you will be to call +yourself a Dashwood. You may frown, but I feel certain that my words +will come true. And, meanwhile, I am afraid that there is no hope at +all for me, my dear." + +"It is impossible," Mary said coldly. Yet her voice trembled and tears +came to her eyes. "Oh, I know that you are a good man and true, but +you must make allowances for me. And besides, love is only a name to +me. I owe my life to you, and believe me, I am too grateful for words. +And if the time should ever come--oh, how selfish I am. Look at your +arm. It is bruised and bleeding. It must have happened when you lifted +me from the saddle. You must come up to the house and have it attended +to at once." + +"I don't think--" Darnley hesitated; "yes I will. It's really nothing. +Let me catch your horse for you and we will walk across the path +together." + + + + +CHAPTER II. +DASHWOOD HALL + + +There were the lodge-gates at last, with the arms of the Dashwoods +carved in mossy stone, and the great iron gates from the cunning hand +of Quentin Matsys himself. Beyond, the noble elms planted in the days +of Elizabeth led to the house, a great Tudor mansion with gabled and +latticed windows covered with ivy to the quaintly carved roof-tree. +The gardens spread wide on either side; there was a thick hedge of +crimson roses bounding the park, and in its purple shade the dappled +deer reposed. Ralph Darnley drew a great breath as he took in the +splendid beauty and serenity of it all. For three hundred years the +reign of the Dashwoods had lasted, and not a stain had shown itself on +the family escutcheon all that time. Darnley could excuse all Mary's +pride. + +"It is exquisitely beautiful," he said, with a queer catch in his +voice. "How vividly it recalls Tennyson's line--'a haunt of ancient +peace.' I am trying to make due allowances for your feelings, Miss +Dashwood. If I had been brought up here, my views might be the same as +yours. I love old houses." + +Mary smiled one of her rare tender smiles. Darnley's eulogy touched +her. She led the way through a great flagged hall, the walls of which +were a perfect dream of carving; from their frames dead and gone +Dashwoods looked down. There was oak carving everywhere, the ceilings +were panelled, in the stained glass windows masses of flowers stood. +Ralph would have stopped to admire it all, but Mary hurried him on. + +"We will go into the breakfast-parlour," she said. "Then I will +endeavour to show you that I can be useful as well as ornamental. +Excuse me one moment--I must get rid of these torn gloves. Ring the +bell, please, for Slight, the butler, and ask him for warm water and +towels." + +Ralph laid his hand on the bell as Mary flitted away. The old butler +came presently, a thin little man, pink and white, the embodiment of +what an old servant should be. Ralph gave his directions clearly +enough, but the man stood there shaking from head to foot. There was +joy and terror and amazement on his face; the tears gathered in his +rheumy eyes. + +"Mr. Ralph!" he whispered, "Mr. Ralph come back from the grave! Come +back after all these years! What will the master say if he knows? I'm +dreaming, that's what is the matter; I've gone off my head or I'm +dreaming. And after forty years!" + +The speaker came forward tremblingly and touched Ralph's hand. +Apparently the contact with warm flesh and blood reassured him, for +the pink apple bloom came back to his cheek. + +"The same and yet not the same," he went on. "Stands to reason as +forty years must make a deal of difference. But you are Mr. Ralph over +again all the same. I loved him, sir. I mourned for him like a child +of my own. I taught him to ride; I taught him to use a gun. I had to +stand between him and Sir Ralph when the crash came. And you are his +son as sure as there is a Heaven above us." + +"Not quite so loud," Ralph said. "Pull yourself together, Slight. I +take it you are old Slight about whom my father talked so often. He +did not forget you, Slight. On his deathbed he gave me a message for +you." + +"And so my dear Mr. Ralph is dead. Dear, dear. What shall I call you, +sir?" + +"You are to call me nothing for the present," Ralph said. "I am Mr. +Darnley, Slight, and you are to be discreet and silent. I had quite +left you out of my calculation when I came here today; in fact, I had +forgotten all about you. It never occurred to me that you would +discover the likeness to what my father was forty years ago. I +will ask you to meet me this evening, say, at half-past ten at the +lodge-gates, for I have much to say to you." + +"And, meanwhile, is nobody to know anything about you, sir?" + +"Not a soul. The present head of the house never saw my father. The +only one likely to recognize me would be the dowager Lady Dashwood, +who is at the dower house. I am placing myself and my happiness +entirely in your hands, my faithful old Slight, and I ask you not to +betray me. Rest assured that it will all come right in time. +Meanwhile, I have hurt my arm, and I require towels and soap and hot +water." + +Slight went his way with the air of a man who dreams. He came back +presently, followed by Mary Dashwood. She dressed Darnley's arm +skilfully enough. The touch of her fingers was soft and soothing. She +was a tender and feeling woman now, without the slightest suggestion +of cold pride on her face. + +"I think that is all," she said quietly. "How brave and strong you +are: how little you make of your courage. And yet few could have done +what you did for me today. But I am forgetting that my father will be +glad to see you. Let us go to the library." + +A tall figure rose from a mass of papers heaped on a table. Here in +the library was the same restful air of calm repose, the same +patrician silence that brooded over everything like the spirit of the +place. A flood of sunlight, tempered by the amber and blue of the +stained glass windows filled the room; the rays centered upon the tall +figure with the thin white face and grey hair, standing by the table. + +"My daughter has been telling me everything, Mr. Darnley," Sir George +said. "It was well and bravely done of you. . . . I am glad to see you +in my house." + +Darnley murmured something appropriate; he hoped that the expression +of his face was not betraying his emotions. For the change in Sir +George since they had last met was startling. The old, jaunty, easy +manner was gone, the straight figure was lost, the iron-grey hair was +white as snow. There were deep lines of care and suffering graven on +the pleasant face, a suggestion of fear, or fright, or remorse. This +was a man who carried some secret in his heart. Darnley felt that he +would have passed Sir George in the street unrecognized. And yet the +man appeared to possess everything that made life worth living. Ralph +ventured to offer some suitable comment on the house and the beauty of +the surroundings. A look of infinite sadness overcame the features of +Dashwood for the moment. The slender fingers clutched as if at +something unseen, as the fingers of a drowning man might clutch at a +straw. + +"Yes, it is perfect enough," he said dreamily. "A perfect house in a +perfect setting. And Mary loves it even more than I do. It seems +almost impossible to connect this place with sin and suffering and the +sordid cares of life--what is it, Slight?" + +"A telegram for you, Sir George," the old butler murmured. "Is there +any reply, sir?" + +Sir George murmured that there was no reply. He dropped the telegram +in an unconcerned way upon the table, but his hand was shaking again, +and his features looked terribly white and worn. + +"From Horace Mayfield," he said huskily. "He is coming down today, on +a rather important piece of business, and will probably stay the +night. By the way, Darnley, it would give me great pleasure if you +would dine with us this evening." + +Ralph would have refused. It would have been an exquisite pleasure to +spend a long summer evening with Mary in that delightful old house, +but then it seemed impossible to be under the same roof as Horace +Mayfield. It appeared strange that that handsome, plausible, well-bred +scoundrel should be a friend of Dashwood. Ralph was framing a +courteous refusal when he became conscious that Mary was regarding him +with a pleading glance. Her face was weary and anxious-looking, her +eyes were alight with an appeal for help. She was asking Ralph to +come, and yet she did not want her father to see how eager she was. + +"I shall be delighted," Ralph answered. "Half-past seven, I think. And +now I must be going." + +Ralph turned away into the great dim hall followed by Mary. A ray of +sunlight fell upon her beautiful face and grateful blue eyes. + +"That was very good of you," she murmured. "Mr. Darnley, Ralph, if I +should want a friend in the near future, I feel assured that I can +rely upon you." + +"I love you with my whole heart and soul," Ralph replied. "And some +day you will give that love to me. I would give my life for you, if +necessary, and you know it." + + + + +CHAPTER III. +HORACE MAYFIELD + + +The cloth had been drawn in the old-fashioned way, so that the candles +in the ancient silver branches made pools of brown light on the +polished mahogany of the dining table. Here were palms and flowers, +feathery fronds, rays of light streaking the sides of blushing grapes +and peaches with the downy bloom on them. The candle rays glistened +sombrely on deep ruby red wines in crystal decanters; the table was as +a bath of silver flame in a background of sombre brown shadows. A +noiseless servant or two, gliding about, ministered to the wants of +the guests. How peaceful, how restful and refined it all was, Ralph +thought, the only jarring note being the person opposite him, a +clean-shaven, hard-featured man with a glass screwed in his left eye. +And what a hard, firm mouth he had. He was quite at his ease, too, in +Dashwood's presence; he chatted with glib assurance to the man whom he +had robbed as deliberately as if he had picked his pocket. Actually he +had met Ralph in the drawing-room an hour before, with a smile and a +proffered hand, as if they had been two men taking up the threads of a +desirable acquaintance. + +Ralph's fingers had itched to be at the throat of the man, but he had +to smile and murmur the ordinary polite commonplaces. He shut his +teeth together now as he noted Mayfield's insolently familiar, not to +say caressing, manner towards Mary Dashwood. Sir George looked on and +smiled in a pained kind of way. He reminded Ralph unpleasantly of a +well-broken dog in the presence of a harsh master. It was almost +pathetic to see how Dashwood hung on any word of Mayfield. Surely +there was some guilty knowledge between the two, some powerful hold +that Mayfield had on his host. It was with a feeling of relief that +Ralph saw Mary rise at length. He opened the door for her, and she +playfully asked him not to be too long, it was so lovely a night. + + +[Illustration: "She playfully asked him not to be too long." _Page +15_] + + +"I'll come with you now," Ralph answered. "I don't care to smoke, and +I never touch wine after dinner. I fear Sir George wants to talk +business, which seems to me to be a desecration on an evening like +this. Shall we go outside?" + +"I think it would be nice," Mary said. "No, I shall not need a wrap." + +She stepped through the double French window that led to the lawn. The +full light of the moon flashed on her ivory shoulders and played in +gilded shadows on her hair. As she looked upwards, Ralph could catch +the exquisite symmetry of her face. A desire to speak possessed him, a +desire to tell the girl strange and wonderful things. Here was his +heart's object standing pale and beautiful by his side; he had only to +stretch out his hands and the flowers were his for the plucking. It +only needed a few words and the whole situation would be changed. But +Ralph was silent, he was too strong and masterful a man for that. What +he won he would win by sheer merit, by intrinsic worth alone. He could +have purchased the kisses and caresses for which his heart hungered, +but he knew that they would be no more than Dead Sea fruit on his +lips. + +"You are very silent," Mary said at length. "What are you thinking +about?" + +"About you," Ralph said boldly. "I was thinking how beautiful you +looked with the fuller moonlight on your face. It is only when you +recollect that you are Miss Dashwood, of Dashwood Hall, that I like +your expression least. And you are not always happy." + +"What do you mean by that?" Mary asked. There was a startled look in +her eyes. "Why should I not be happy?" + +"Why, indeed! But the fact remains that you are not. I do not want to +appear inquisitive, but there is a worm in the heart of the rose +somewhere. Mary, why do you allow your father to ask Mayfield here +when you dislike him so much? Though you are exclusive and can show +your pride, yet you allow that man to be insolently familiar with you. +He laid his hand on your arm tonight, and I could have struck him for +it. It is not as if you cared for him----" + +"Oh, no, no," Mary said with a shudder. "I detest him. He is so cold +and calculating, you cannot chock him off. I thought that when I +refused to marry him----" + +"Ha! I expected something of the kind. Mayfield is not the man to take +'No' for an answer once he has set his heart upon a thing. I told you +before that he was a scoundrel, and I am in a position to prove it. +Not that the fellow has done anything to bring himself within the grip +of the law--your City rascal is too clever for that. And your father +is afraid of him; he watches him as a dog watches his master. If he is +in the power of that man he must get out without delay. He must raise +money on the property----" + +"He can't," Mary said sadly. "My father has not taken me into his +confidence. But you can see how much he has aged and altered lately, +and you looked quite shocked when you met this morning. I don't know +what it is, but I feel that some evil is impending over him. That is +why I asked you to be my friend. You see my father is not really a +rich man. He has the income of this fine estate, it is true. I believe +he could get rid of Horace Mayfield if he could raise money on the +property, but that is impossible. Old Sir Ralph, my great uncle, had a +serious quarrel with his wife--that is the present dowager Lady +Dashwood, you understand. It must have been all Sir Ralph's fault, for +she is the dearest old lady. The heir to the property took the side of +his mother when the separation came, and left Dashwood Hall, declaring +that he would never see the place again. There is only one man living +who knows the whole facts of the case, and that is Slight. But his +lips are sealed. The old man loved young Ralph Dashwood as if he had +been his own child. Ralph the younger went off to America, and has +never been heard of again. That was forty years ago. When old Sir +Ralph died two years ago, and my father came into the property, no +will could be found. So my father, being next of kin, succeeded to the +property and the rents of the estate. It is a settled estate, and each +possessor has only what is called a life-interest in it. Now it is +just possible that some day an heir will turn up. It is more than +likely that young Ralph Dashwood married in America, and left a +family. Or he may be still alive, and is waiting to claim, for his +son, that which he declined to touch himself. Most people know this, +and that is why my father could never raise a penny on the family +property. If he could, he would not long remain under the heel of +Horace Mayfield. Oh, if we could only find a way!" + +"I begin to understand," Ralph said thoughtfully. "If old Sir Ralph +had died leaving a will, things might have been very different. Is +that what you mean?" + +"Partly. Sir Ralph died leaving a good deal of ready money. That will +no doubt come to us in time, but for the present we cannot touch it in +the absence of proof of the death of the youngest Ralph Dashwood. I +mean the one who went to America. Old Lady Dashwood says she is sure +that her husband did leave a will, and that he had divided all his +money, with certain provisions. If that will could be found, we should +be in a position to get rid of Mayfield. What a hateful thing this +money is, and what misery it seems to bring everybody. But I am afraid +that I am very selfish and exacting. Why should I worry you with our +troubles?" + +"My shoulders are broad, and I have very few of my own," Ralph smiled. +"Indeed, I am more interested than you imagine. As I told you today, I +am a poor man, thanks to one who is a guest here at the present +moment. But, still, don't forget the fable of the mouse and the lion. +I may find a means of freeing you from the net yet. But here come the +others." + +Mayfield emerged from the window on to the lawn. His cigar seemed to +pollute the sweet-scented night; he was talking loudly to Sir George. + +"We shall know presently," he said. "The worst of living buried in the +country is that one is out of touch with telegrams and telephones. I +told my secretary to wire directly he heard from Worham and his +partner." + +"Don't let us talk about it," said Sir George in a voice that shook a +little. "Let us enjoy the beauty of the night . . . I began to wonder +what had become of you, Darnley. So you and Mary have been communing +with Nature together. You will have a cigar before you go?" + +Darnley declined the offer. He did not care to stay any longer in +Mayfield's presence. And it was getting on to half-past ten, when he +had promised to meet Slight. He made his excuses and passed across the +lawn in the direction of the avenue. At the end of the rose garden he +paused to look back. + +He saw the picture of the grand old house standing out in the +moonlight; he could see Mary, pale and silent, a dainty figure in +white and amber. He saw Mayfield bend familiarly to her, and the girl +draw coldly away. There was a fierce tumult in his heart, a desire to +go back and proclaim his story. He could stretch out a hand, and put +an end to all that without delay. But he preferred to wait. He was +going to win Mary, and wear her like a white rose on the shield of a +knight. He was going to bend down the barrier of her pride, and win +her for himself alone, _as_ himself, and not as a man who had the +advantages of fortune on his side. + +These thoughts filled his mind as he walked down the avenue. He knew +that he had far to go before the goal was in sight. He almost walked +over a figure standing just inside the lodge gates, and his thoughts +came tumbling to earth again. + +"I beg your pardon, Slight," he said. "I was miles away just now. Let +us sit on this tree stump in sight of the old house and talk things +over." + + + + +CHAPTER IV. +A LEAF FROM THE PAST + + +The old man stood there in the moonlight, his face agitated and his +lips quivering. + +"I can hear the master's voice again," he murmured. "Time seems to +have gone back with me. It is as if you had come like a ghost from the +grave, Mr. Ralph. And it was close here that your father stood, after +the great quarrel, and swore that Dashwood Hall should see him no +more. . . . And so you have come back to claim your own, sir?" + +"I must be very like my father, or what my father was like forty years +ago," Ralph said thoughtfully. "Sit down, Slight, please don't stand +looking at me like that. I did not expect to be recognized in this +way, and I am not here to claim my own, at least, not in the fashion +that you mean. My father chose deliberately to forfeit his +inheritance. My grandfather gave him the chance of coming into his own +again. But he always refused, as you know, Slight. And now Sir George +Dashwood reigns in his stead." + +"The estate, the title--everything is yours, Sir Ralph," Slight said +doggedly. + +"No, no. Forty years ago there was a great upheaval here. It was a +quarrel that could never be patched up or healed. At the bottom of it +was family pride, the accursed kind of pride that stifles every +feeling of humanity and turns hearts into flints as hard as the nether +millstone. The upshot of that quarrel was a permanent separation +between my grandfather and the present dowager Lady Dashwood; it drove +my father into exile. It broke the heart of one of the best and truest +women that ever lived. And all this to keep from so-called +contamination the blood of the Dashwoods. Before my father went away +he took steps to make his sacrifice complete. He executed a deed +cutting off the entail of the estate, so that the late Sir Ralph could +do what he pleased with it." + +"I don't quite understand that, Sir Ralph," Slight said. + +"Don't address me by that title," Darnley replied. "Let me explain. +Most people believe that a family estate like ours cannot be left +elsewhere. But if the heir likes to execute a deed for the purpose of +cutting off the entail as it is called, why, the holder for the time +being can do what he likes with the property. My father did this with +his eyes wide open, and you witnessed the deed, Slight." + +"I recollect it," Slight said slowly. He made the admission +grudgingly. "It was my task to deliver it into the hands of old Sir +Ralph. If I had only known!" + +"You would have destroyed it. You would have carried your loyalty to +my father so far. But the deed was delivered to my grandfather and +subsequently he made his will. For twenty years there was silence +between father and son, a silence which was broken at length by the +father, who wrote to the son and asked him to return. Then Sir Ralph +wrote once more to my father and said that he would give the latter +twenty years to decide. He had made a will at the same date as that of +the second letter, leaving everything to my father, provided that +within twenty years of that date he claimed his patrimony. If the date +passed, then everything was to go to the man nominated in that will. I +need not say that the man so indicated was Sir George Dashwood. In +other words, if I make no sign for six months, the property becomes +his irrevocably. I can claim the property as my father's heir, and I +can produce that will as proof of my claim." + +"But the will was never found," Slight said eagerly. "We looked for a +will everywhere." + +"It was hidden away. In old Sir Ralph's last letter to my father he +explained the hiding-place. I have only to let Sir George know where +the will is, and he is safe. For the will directs the finder to the +repository of the deed cutting off the entail, so that Sir George can +prove his claim then to everything. At present he has no more than the +income of the estate, and I have ascertained that he has many old +debts to pay off. In addition to this he is under the thumb of a +scoundrel." + +"Ay, that he is," Slight muttered. "We servants learn a great deal +more than you gentlemen give us credit for. That Mayfield means +mischief. They say that he's rich. But riches don't content him. He +wants to marry Miss Mary. And she can't bear the look of him. If only +he can ruin Sir George, his path will be clear. Miss Mary would break +her heart if she had to leave this place. From a child she was brought +up here, she loves every stick and stone. And she was always led to +believe that some day it would belong to her, because her father was +the last of the old race, seeing that we all regarded Master Ralph as +dead and buried. And Miss Mary had dreams of being mistress here some +day, and, maybe, dreams, too, of a good husband and children of her +own. Ay, it's a terrible weapon this Mayfield has in his hands." + +"So it seems," Ralph replied. "I know the rascal well, for he ruined +my father two years ago. Mind you, at that time, I had never heard of +Dashwood Park. I was merely the son of a Mr. Darnley who had done well +silver mining in California. Mayfield came to us in London and we +trusted him, trusted him to such an extent that nearly all we had +passed into his hands. It was only on his deathbed that my father +told me everything, told me what my birthright was, and how I could +secure it, if I did not wait too long. So I came down here to look +about me, and to my surprise I found that I had met Miss Mary before +in Paris. Is she a favourite here, Slight?" + +"Ay, indeed she is, sir," Slight replied. There was a ring of +passionate sincerity in his speech. "We all love her dearly. Strangers +think that she is cold and distant. It may be so. But we all know the +heart of gold that beats under that placid breast. It is in times of +sickness and trouble that we know of the angel in our midst. I'm not +denying that Miss Mary is tainted with the curse of family pride. But +still. . . . Ah, sir, if you ever looked out for a wife, why there is +the very one for you. You the head, and she the mistress. It would be +a happy day for me." + +"That is just what I mean," Ralph said quietly. "Slight, I have been +in love with your mistress for two long years. And I am going to marry +her some day. But I have my own idea and my own way of leading up to +that happiness. She must care for me for my own sake, and not because +I am Sir Ralph Dashwood, of Dashwood Hall, and she a--pauper. No, no. +My lady shall stoop to me, she shall tell me with her own sweet lips +that a good man's love is worth all the pride of place, worth a dozen +old families and a score of houses like this. _Then_ she shall know +everything, but not before." + +"And that will be too late," sighed Slight. "Before that Mr. Mayfield +will have ruined Sir George, and Miss Mary will marry him to save the +old house. She would make any sacrifice and face any degradation for +the sake of her pride. Though every fibre of her body may call out +against the pollution of that man's touch, she would smile at him +before the world and pretend to be happy. It's a dangerous experiment, +Mr. Ralph, and don't you try it. I haven't lived in the world for nigh +on four-score years for nothing. If you love Miss Mary, and if she +comes to care for you, she'll care none the less because you are +master of this good old place. And if her father is ruined----" + +"My good Slight, her father is not going to be ruined. Unless I am +greatly mistaken, he is exceedingly anxious to be rid of Horace +Mayfield. I presume it is a mere matter of money, and for the sake of +argument call it £50,000. Sir George owes Mayfield that sum. In the +present circumstances he could not hope to repay it. A disgraceful +bankruptcy may follow, a criminal collapse even, for Mayfield would +not hesitate where his desires and interests are concerned. But +suppose I could show Sir George a way to get this money? In that case +he could rid himself of that scoundrel at any sacrifice. I have only +to let Sir George know where the will is hidden and he is free." + +"It would be wrong, sir, cruelly wrong to yourself," Slight cried. +"You could never appear after that and claim your own. Sir George +would be no more than an innocent impostor. And you, the real master +of Dashwood, would be compelled to earn your bread." + +"I don't see it exactly," Ralph smiled. "My father never intended to +claim his inheritance. He cut himself off from England deliberately. +And after all these years, would it not be a cruel thing to deprive +Miss Mary of a home which she has come to regard as her own? But I +have made up my mind, Slight, and nothing shall deter me from it. You +may call me a visionary and a dreamer if you like, but my hands are +strong and capable, and I have been taught to use my head. I want you +to be discreet and silent; I want you to be my witness when the time +comes. I should not have taken you into my confidence, but that you +recognized me at once. All day I have been wandering about the dear +old place. I have studied all its ancient beauties. We can't wonder +that Miss Mary has come to regard it as part of her life. It has cost +me more than a passing effort to restrain my covetousness." + +Ralph stifled a sigh as he looked about him. He could see the fine old +house clear cut against the sky; in the park the oaks and beeches hung +like great sentinels guarding the home of the ages. And it was so +still and peaceful, so suggestive of all that is worth having in life. +A cry from somewhere broke the perfect silence, the bleat of a sheep +from distant pastures. + +"It shall be as you wish, sir," Slight said at length. "I could never +refuse your father anything, and I can refuse you nothing when you +look at me out of the past with his eyes. But sorrow and trouble will +come of this; you mark my words." + +"No, no," Ralph cried as he rose to his feet. "True and sterling +happiness, the death and destruction of the family pride which has +been our curse for many generations. I am going my own way to work and +you are going to help me. Now come and show me the big window in the +staircase that my father used when he wanted to leave the house late +at night to visit poor Maria Edgerton, the child-wife, the child of +the people, who was killed by our family pride as surely as if she had +been murdered. My mother was a good woman, Slight, she had her +husband's respect and affection, but his heart was always with the +girl who suffered so much to become his wife. I hope that her grave +has never been neglected, Slight." + +"No, sir," Slight said huskily. "We have seen to that--her ladyship +and myself between us. That is the window, sir, the big stained glass +one with the light behind it. You can get up on to the leads with the +aid of the ivy. At the bottom of the window is a brass knob. If you +press it, the window opens inwards, and there you are. But I hope you +don't need to burgle your own house, seeing that you are a welcome +guest there. And, as I was saying just now----" + +The speaker paused, for the soft, rich silence of the night was broken +by a cry. The long drawing-room window leading to the lawn was still +open; the lamplight flooded on pictures and china and flowers. A +figure came to the window, a tall figure with upraised hands and hair +wild and dishevelled. + +"You scoundrel," the figure cried. "You have done this to ruin me!" + + + + +CHAPTER V. +THE SACRIFICE + + +The speaker's tones rang out with passionate vehemence. He stumbled +down the steps, into the garden, and repeated his accusation loudly. +It all seemed strangely out of place there, Ralph thought; it was no +spot for sordid emotions, and angry passions. The words rang clear and +loud to the startled vault of heaven; a blackbird started from her +nest and flew across the lawn with nervous twitter. Then another +figure came from the drawing-room, the trim, immaculate figure of +Horace Mayfield. + +"For goodness' sake, control yourself Dashwood," he said curtly. +"There is nothing in the world to make all this ridiculous fuss about. +It is all the fortune of war. We tried to get the best of these +fellows, and they looted us instead. It was no fault of mine that +these cablegrams miscarried. My manager has sold me--a thing that +sometimes happens in the City. All we have to do is to pay and look +pleasant." + +"But I can't pay, and you know it. Nobody understands the tenure on +which I hold the property better than you do. If I wait for the money, +what happens?" + +"I am afraid it will be very awkward," Mayfield said. "People will +refuse to believe that you have been a victim of a fraud. They will +actually regard the fraud as your own. Whereas, if you pay up +cheerfully, nothing can be said. Personally, I am all right. I kept my +name out of the business so that you could have all the credit. +Unfortunately, you will get all the blame as well. There may not be a +prosecution; of course, it is not an easy matter to get the Public +Prosecutor to interfere in these cases. The only thing for it is to +take the bull by the horns and get out of all by paying." + +Sir George laughed in a bitter kind of way. He stood with his back to +the house, facing the man who had brought all this about. He seemed to +be almost beside himself with fury. The whole man was transformed. + +"I have no money," he said, "and you know it. You have deliberately +brought me to this pass for purposes of your own. You have traded upon +my love of gambling to get me into your hands. And I might have been +happy and comfortable here. I was getting rid of my millstone of debt +so nicely when you came along once more. But for you, I should not +stand here now outside my own home, an honoured house for three +centuries, a ruined and desperate man with a vision of a prisoner's +dock before me. You are a rich man----" + +"Possibly, Dashwood. At any rate, I am in a position to find money. +But there is no kind of friendship or sentiment when one comes to +business. You are not a child that you can accuse me of luring you to +your ruin. Still, I am not disposed to take offence. I will undertake +to settle the matter for you in time. But you must have a joint +guarantee and I want another person to become security for you. You +understand what I mean. If Miss Mary will be so good as to give me her +word----" + +A sudden cry of passion broke from the older man. He seemed to lose +all control of himself. He dashed forward and smote Mayfield with fury +on the mouth. The latter staggered back a thin streak of blood +trickling from his under lip. + +There was no outbreak, no display of passion, on the part of Mayfield. +He was surprised and shaken by the impetuosity of the attack, but he +stood there calmly, as he wiped the blood from his face. His features +might have been carved out of solid marble, and the full light of the +moon heightened the effect. In spite of his knowledge of the man, +Ralph could not but admire him at that moment. One who could keep his +feelings under such control would prove a dangerous foe. + +It was a strange, weird scene altogether, terrible and repulsive by +very force of contrast. The environment was so quiet and peaceful, so +exalted and refined. Ralph stood as if rooted to the spot. He saw Sir +George advance again, he saw the hand upraised once more. All the +pride of rank and place had fallen from the man; he was transformed +for the moment to a savage. Then Mayfield caught the uplifted arm and +held it in a grip like a vice. + +"You will gain nothing by this," he said quietly. "You seem to forget +that I am a guest under your roof. Would you alarm your servants, +would you have them know what their master is, when all his passions +are aroused? Come, sir, this is not what one has a right to expect +from the owner of Dashwood Park. You owe me an apology----" + +The words were lost on Sir George. He wrenched himself free, he turned +and faced the house with uplifted arms. The demon of anger still +possessed him. + +"I owe you nothing," he cried. "But for you I should be one of the +happiest men alive. If I had been content to pay off old debts by +degrees nothing would have happened. But I listened to you, with what +result you know. You are a trickster and a cheat, a liar and a knave. +You have laid a trap for me, and I have tumbled into it with my eyes +open. What you mean to say in as many words is this--unless I can +procure the sum of £50,000 in a few days I stand every chance of a +criminal prosecution. You know exactly how I am situated, you know +that I am helpless." + +"You are not in the least helpless," Mayfield said sternly. "To a +certain extent the fault is mine, and I am prepared to do all that is +in my power. You have only to say the word and the money is yours. +Promise me that your daughter shall become my wife, get her to say the +word, and the situation is absolutely changed. I neither admit nor +deny your accusations. You could not prove them--a jury would give a +verdict against you, if you tried to do so. And if Miss Mary does me +the honour to become my wife----" + +"Never," Dashwood cried. "Never in this world. Our women only wed +honourable men." + +"Is that really so? And what manner of man will the world call you if +I fail to come to your assistance? Control yourself--listen to me for +a moment. Do you realise what will happen to you if I go away without +coming to some understanding? The police will come here and arrest +you, it may be when you are entertaining friends. They will take you +away, with handcuffs on your wrists. You will stand in the dock +charged with a vulgar conspiracy to defraud innocent shareholders, +_and the charge will be proved_. And if you ever come out of gaol +again, it will be as a broken and dispirited man. It will be useless, +when it is too late, to look for any consideration from me. I am not +likely to forget the blow you dealt me just now. And, whilst you are +raving like a lunatic, we might be settling the matter comfortably +over a cigar. You are a man of the world; at least you will be once +more when this fit of midsummer madness has passed. Explain everything +to your daughter if you like, put any face upon it that you please. +Agree to my conditions and you can sleep in peace tonight, and every +other night, for the matter of that. Listen to the voice of reason, +and I will forget the treatment I have had at your hands." + +But Sir George was not listening. Apparently a terrible struggle was +going on in his breast. He could see now, how neatly and cleverly he +had been trapped, he could see that he had no remedy against the man +who had schemed for this position. And he was innocent himself of +anything dishonourable. And now to give his daughter to this man! The +mere idea was horrible. The meanest hound on the estate was far better +off than Sir George at this moment. + +"Do your worst," he shouted. His voice rang out on the startled +silence. "Do your worst. If I could kill you now, I would do so. You +are not fit to live, your presence is an insult to any honest man. I +can see nothing, I am going blind. . . ." + + + + +CHAPTER VI. +A CRUEL MISUNDERSTANDING + + +Sir George clasped his hands to his eyes; everything for the moment +had faded from his sight. The blood was rushing wildly through his +head; there was a din like the clang of hammers in his brain. He was +beside himself with grief and passion. His voice uprose again and +broke the stillness of the night horribly. What were his title and his +old family worth now? It was all as nothing, in the presence of this +threatened calamity. + +"Mary, Mary," he cried, "come to me. Come, whilst I have the strength +left to tell you the truth. Tomorrow I shall be too weak, tomorrow I +shall not dare to give all this up. Come, and tell him that you will +have none of him." + +The speech ended in a yearning scream. It was a strange setting for so +peaceful a scene. Ralph Darnley made a step forward, with the impulse +to interfere, strong upon him. Then a figure came between the light +and the window, and Mary appeared. She stood there, tall and stately +in her white dress; her eyes were filled with stern disapproval. She +came slowly down the steps and stood between the two men. She did not +fail to notice Mayfield's cut lip and the spot or two of blood on his +gleaming shirt front. + +"What is the meaning of this?" she asked. "Father, you don't mean to +say----" + +"Ay, but I do," Dashwood said doggedly. "I struck him. Would that I +had killed him! There would be far less disgrace for the family in the +end. I struck him, and he took it quietly like the cur and craven that +he is!" + +"I hardly think that I deserve that," Mayfield said. "Whatever my +failings may be, you will not find a lack of physical courage amongst +them. Sir George has been very unfortunate in his speculations, and he +chooses to blame me for it. We only got the news late tonight. A man +in whom we trusted has played the knave, and Sir George is likely to +suffer for it. To put the matter quite plainly, unless your father can +find a very large sum of money in a few days he will probably be +prosecuted. One can make any allowance for his feelings in the +circumstances, but that is no reason why he should accuse one of +deliberately laying a plot to ruin him. As to the assault upon me, why +let it pass. In the excitement of the moment----" + +"Pardon me," Mary said quietly, "I heard my name mentioned. My +father's voice was raised so loudly that I could not help hearing +something of what passed. You did me the honour to say that I might +avert the catastrophe." + +"That is so," Mayfield retorted in the same self-contained manner. "In +certain circumstances I am prepared to stand by your father. I can say +that it is a misunderstanding so far as he is concerned, and that I am +prepared to take over the venture as it stands, and pay everybody who +has lost confidence in it. I could write to the Press and vindicate +the honour of the man who stood in the light of prospective +father-in-law to me." + +The girl's face whitened in the moonlight. Ralph could see the heaving +of her breast. She had taken in the situation like a flash of +inspiration. There was none of the grinning triumph of the successful +rogue on Mayfield's face; it was all being quietly and decorously +done, but the grip of iron was there all the same, the iron hand in +the velvet glove. Mary essayed to speak, but words failed her for the +moment. Sir George stood between the man and his prey with trembling +hands outstretched as if to keep them apart. His lips opened, he +gabbled something too incoherent for understanding, then he collapsed +like a heap of black cloth on the grass. Something seemed to snap in +his brain, then a blank came over him. + +Mary forgot everything else in the dictates of humanity. With a cry +she knelt on the grass by the side of the stricken man. Ralph came +forward, slowly followed by Slight. It seemed natural that he should +be there at that moment. Mary turned towards him instantly. Here was +the friend in need that she so sorely prayed for. + +"It is some kind of seizure," she said. "My father had one two years +ago in Paris. He was warned then to avoid any undue excitement. Will +you please help me to carry him to his room? Slight, call a groom up +and send him to Longtown for a doctor." + +"No occasion," Mayfield remarked. "Give me the key of the stables, and +I will take my car into Longtown and bring the doctor back with me. It +will take less time." + +It was a weary two hours that passed before the doctor arrived. Still, +his account was a fairly cheerful one when it came. It was merely a +case of rest and quietness and careful nursing. Sir George had fallen +into a kind of troubled sleep. + +Ralph turned to go. Mayfield had volunteered to take the doctor home +again. Slight was sitting with his master till Mary was ready to +return. She stood by the window leading to the lawn; that means of +exit was as good as any other, Ralph said. + +"What were you doing outside tonight?" the girl asked keenly. + +"We will go into that another time," Ralph suggested. "I did not mean +to listen, but I heard everything. Did I not tell you that Mayfield +was a villain?" + +"I have felt it before now. Without any apparent cause for it, I have +detested that man. And he has always acted as if he had only to say +the word and I would consent to be his wife. On two occasions I have +refused him. To think that men should be such villains where innocent +girls are concerned! Of course, he has led my father into a terrible +position, and my hand is to be the price of his freedom. Ralph, I am +so dreadfully, horribly afraid of that man! How wonderfully he must +have controlled himself when my father struck him! And how cleverly he +insinuated that he might be allowed to appear as my future husband. I +tell you I would give up everything to be free of this tangle. What is +my pride, what is my home here, so long as the happiness of a lifetime +is at stake!" + +"That is a lesson that I have tried to teach you before," Ralph said +quietly. "Mary, I love you. The time will come when you will love me. +If ever you needed a friend in your life, you need one at this moment. +I could show you a way out, but after that I should never dare to +claim my reward, because the obligation in your eyes would be too +great. I want you to care for me for my own sake. Still, you need have +no anxiety. Within the next few hours Mayfield will be powerless to +harm you." + +"Ralph, you speak in enigmas. I pray you to be plain. Can't you trust +me?" + +"My dear, in this matter I cannot trust anybody; by Heaven, I can +hardly trust myself. Ah, if you only knew how I love you and how great +the temptation is! But the reward that I am working for will be all +the sweeter when the time comes. Go sleep now with a calm mind, for I +pledge my honour that things shall be as I say." + +Mary's two hands had fluttered out to Ralph. She was moved by the deep +sincerity of his words, for a broken smile, half respect and half +affection, quivered on her face. With an impulse that he could not +resist, Ralph drew the girl to him and laid his lips on hers. Then, +with a sigh, he put her from him and turned towards the window. + +"There," he said, "I ask no pardon for my audacity. I could not help +it. And that kiss was as pure as if it came from your mother's lips." + +"The first from any man," Mary murmured, a pink flush on her face. +"You are a good man, Ralph, and it is a pity I did not meet you before +the curse of the family pride fell upon me. Good night, and God bless +you for all your kindness to me." + +The window closed and the blind fell, the lights in the house began to +vanish one by one, and still Ralph lingered there on the grass. He saw +Mayfield return, he saw the last ray extinguished, save for the +solitary glow in Sir George's bedroom. A clock over the stables struck +the hour of two, and still Ralph stood there oblivious of the flight +of time. + +He was thinking of the dramatic scene of the evening. More than once +he mourned his lost opportunities. He had all the strings in his own +hand, the game was entirely his, and he felt, too, that in spite of +her fateful pride, Mary was beginning to care for him. If not, why had +she taken his kiss so sweetly? Ralph had only to proclaim his +identity, he had merely to prove his title to the estate, and at once +he would be in the position to free the present occupier of Dashwood +Hall of his peril. And Mary would not refuse to marry the man whose +blood was as pure as hers. But Ralph had made up his mind what to do. +He would win her love as Ralph Darnley, afterwards the truth could be +told. Why not tonight? he asked himself. There was no time like the +present. He would go and find the will, he would let Sir George know +where it was. + +The house was still now, and Ralph knew the way . . . . He was in the +long corridor presently, here was the old oak dower-chest and the +panel below it. Here was the spring by which the panel was released. +The thing was ridiculously easy. + +Ralph pressed in the spring and the panel came away. Within it was a +long manuscript written on thick white paper. Ralph thrilled as he +read the endorsement. Beyond doubt, here was the will of his +grandfather, Sir Ralph Dashwood. All this was quite plain in the +moonlight. It only needed now to put the will at the bottom of the +dower-chest and write a letter to Sir George anonymously, and tell him +where to seek for it. And Ralph had only to be silent henceforth, and +the deception would pass for all time. Verily Mayfield's triumph was +likely to be a very short one, and . . . + +Somebody was speaking to Ralph: Mary, with her hair over her +shoulders, and a candle in her hand. Her face was cold and set, her +eyes filled with stern displeasure. + +"Thief in the night," she said. "What is the meaning of this, Mr. +Darnley?" + + + + +CHAPTER VII. +THE ONLY WAY + + +A sense of blinding, unreasonable anger held Ralph for the moment. He +was doing nothing wrong. He was acting entirely for the best, and here +he was taken under the most shameful conditions--a miserable, degraded +thief in the night. From the coldness of Mary's voice, from the scorn +in her eyes, he could read the reflection of her thoughts. And yet he +was acting from the highest and most honourable motives. Surely no man +was ever impelled by a loftier idea of self-sacrifice. + +"I ask what you are doing," Mary repeated. "Do not tax my patience too +far." + +There was no mistaking the menace in those clear-cut tones. Thus would +the daughter of the house of Dashwood address a burglar or other +midnight intruder. Ralph felt that she would have been not in the +least afraid to face a felon of that type; his face tingled as he felt +himself set down in the same category. He cudgelled his brains for +some plausible explanation which should be anything but the right one. +The edge of the failing moon still left a shaft of pallid light +shining through the great stained glass window; it flung into high +relief the arms and motto of the family of Dashwood. And those arms +and that motto belonged to the man who stood there with the shamefaced +air of a boy caught in a fault. + +"I am still waiting for you to speak," Mary went on. "It is possible +that there may be some explanation of this amazing conduct of yours." + +The cold, proud voice seemed to doubt it all the same. And yet one +word would have swept all the clouds of suspicion away. Ralph knew +that it lay in his power to bring that white, haughty figure to her +knees; one inkling of the truth and the whole situation was changed. +For all this belonged to Ralph; Mary was no more than an honoured +guest in the house. Yes, it all belonged to him, the grand old house, +the matchless pictures, the furniture from the time of Elizabeth, the +great sweeps of upland country, and the farms lying snug under their +red roofs. + +A few words spoken, and what a difference there would be! Those words +meant that Ralph would have held out his hands and asked Mary to come +and help him to reign here. Ay, and she would have come, too. Her +point of view would be entirely changed. And she must love him. +Indeed, he had more than a feeling that she loved him now, without +being aware of the state of her affections. Her heart would go out to +him, and there would be peace and happiness for evermore. + +The temptation was great, so great that the beads of perspiration +stood out on Ralph's forehead. But he crushed the temptation down; his +pride came to his assistance. No, when Mary came to love, she should +love the man for his own sake, she should tell him so, and Dashwood +should be as nothing in comparison. + +"I came here to look for something," Ralph said at length. + +"Indeed! Judging by what you hold in your hand I should say that you +have found it. How did you manage to obtain entrance to the house?" + +"Quite a simple matter," Ralph replied. "I climbed on to the leads +outside the big window. By pressing a knob outside, the window can be +made to open." + +"Really! I have lived here practically all my life, and I was not +aware of that fact. For an absolute stranger, your knowledge of the +house is exceedingly comprehensive. May I ask if you have found what +you were looking for?" + +"I have," Ralph said huskily. "Permit me to replace it in the old +chest. Tomorrow, if your father is well enough, I will see him and +explain. I beg to assure you that I have what criminal lawyers call a +perfect answer to the charge." + +"And you ask me to believe this?" Mary burst out passionately. "How do +I know that you are not one of those who are in league against us? How +do I know that your indignation against Horace Mayfield is not all +assumed?" + +"How do you know that I am a gentleman?" Ralph retorted. "You cannot +explain why." + +"Indeed I cannot," Mary said bitterly. "I trusted you, I regarded you +as a friend. I asked for your assistance and you promised it to me. In +my heart I thanked God that I had a friend that I could rely upon. +Actually, you caused me to forget the difference between our stations +in life. And now!" + +The girl paused, with something like tears in her voice. She looked +very sweet and womanly at that moment, Ralph thought. He could afford +to ignore the suggestion of the social gulf between them. The +temptation to tell the truth came over him again, but once more he +fought the impulse and conquered it. + +"In spite of your distressful pride, you are a very woman," he said. +"I am your friend and more than your friend. For your sake, there is +nothing that I would not do. It is for your sake that I am here +tonight, strange as it may seem. A little time ago, fate placed me in +possession of certain information closely touching on the fortunes of +your house. Please do not ask me to explain, for I cannot do so +without spoiling everything. Call me a sentimentalist, if you +like--perhaps the air of the grand old place has affected me. Anyway, +there it is. I came here tonight to place you in possession of certain +information that would for ever have rid you of the hateful presence +of the man who calls himself Horace Mayfield. I did not want to place +you under any kind of obligation, so I chose this method----" + +"But why?" Mary exclaimed. "Why? Have you not saved my life twice? +Could a million obligations like this increase the burden of my debt +of gratitude to you?" + +"That is right," Ralph admitted. "Call me a Quixote if you like. I am. +The day will come when your eyes will be no longer blind, when love +will come before everything. I have my own way of getting my ends, and +am too proud to rely upon anything but myself. I am going to make you +happy, and you are going to be the mainspring of that happiness." + +Ralph spoke almost with the spirit of prophecy upon him. It would all +come right some day, but he little dreamed of the trouble and +tribulation that were near at hand. All he could see now was that +Mary's eyes were growing dim and softer. + +"My knowledge is going to save you," Ralph went on. "But I did not +wish you to know that I had any hand in the business. As I said +before, you must not ask me to explain. I want you to give me your +hand, and to say that you regard me as being still beyond suspicion. +Oh, I know that it is a deal to ask. But a long pedigree and the +possession of a grand old house are not necessary to the honour of a +man. I admit that I crept here like a thief in the night. If you +charged me, I should have nothing to say, my character would be +forever ruined. If you----" + +Ralph paused, and his face flushed with annoyance. A petulant voice +calling for Mary broke the silence--shuffling feet came along the +corridor. Dishevelled and dazed, Sir George Dashwood stood there, +candle in hand, looking from the glorious white figure with the +rippling golden hair to the faint outline of Darnley. The old man was +haggard and trembling, yet a certain dignity sustained him. + +"I have called you three times," he said. "I needed you, my child. I +woke up with my head better and a raging thirst upon me. Then I +thought that I heard voices here and I came out. The situation, Mr. +Darnley, is singular. Permit me to remind you that it is not the usual +thing----" + +The speaker paused. He seemed to be struggling for words to express +his feelings. + +"Quite so, Sir George," Ralph said eagerly. "I--came back for +something. I helped you into the house after your illness overcame +you. Forgive me if I seem to have stayed a little too long in my +anxiety to be of assistance. If you will take my advice you will go +back to your room without delay." + +Sir George muttered something to the effect that he was very tired. He +babbled about cool springs in the woods, he accepted Mary's arm as a +weary child might do. It seemed almost impossible to believe that this +was the sprightly, gallant figure that Ralph had known in Paris so +short a time ago. But when Ralph had gone by the way in which he had +come, and once more Sir George was in his bedroom, a change came over +him. He eagerly drank the soda-water that Mary had procured for him. + +"No, no," he cried, "tired as I am, I cannot sleep yet. I was half +asleep, I was between waking and dreaming, and I was dying of thirst. +I came out into the corridor and saw you standing there with Ralph +Darnley. There were certain words that seemed to be burned into my +brain with letters of fire. You were angry with him, and yet he was +going to be a friend to us. That was no common thief in the night, +Mary. What was it he found? What was it that was going to rid us of +the hateful presence of Horace Mayfield? Don't tell me that I was +dreaming, don't say that it was all a cruel delusion on my part. The +secret, the secret, girl." + +The words came like a torrent. Out of his white and haggard face, +Dashwood's eyes gleamed like restless stars on a windy night. The +clutch on the girl's arm was almost painful in its intensity. Mary +wondered why she was trembling so. + +"Hush," she said. "You must sleep now, or you will be really ill +again. Leave it till the morning, when you will be better able to +understand. I cannot tell you now; indeed, I know no more than you do +yourself. But now you must go to sleep!" + + + + +CHAPTER VIII. +FOUND! + + +Sir George lay back on the bed with weary eyelids closed. His last +effort had cost him more than he knew. Mary's will had conquered for +the moment, and he felt disposed to obey. All the same the strange +thread of logical reason was going on in his mind. The only thing that +could save him and preserve the proud traditions of the Dashwoods must +be something in the way of papers or documents of some kind. He lay +there, allowing Mary to make him comfortable for the night. He lay +there long after the girl had departed to her own room and the house +was wrapped in close slumber. But the quietness was soothing to Sir +George's brain. His mind was growing stronger and more logical; the +dazed dream of the scene in the corridor began to shape itself into +concrete facts. + +What had Ralph Darnley been saying? Yes, it was all coming back now. +Darnley had learned certain facts somewhere, bearing on the fortunes +of the house of Dashwood. Surely there was nothing so wildly +improbable in this, seeing that Ralph Darnley had passed the best part +of his life in America. The late Ralph Dashwood, the original heir to +the property, had lived in America, too. Of course, America was a +large continent, but that was no reason why Ralph Dashwood and +Darnley's father should not have been friends. Had not Ralph Darnley +admitted that he had business in the neighbourhood of Dashwood Hall? +Perhaps he had come to make money out of his information. But then the +young fellow was a gentleman, and would not stoop to that kind of +thing. + +Still, he knew there was no getting away from the fact, for had not +Dashwood heard it from the younger man's lips? A means whereby it was +possible to get rid of Horace Mayfield for ever! The mere idea sent +the blood throbbing through the sick man's veins, and brought him in a +sitting position in bed. That meant documents or papers of some kind; +it could really mean nothing else. Dashwood remembered vividly now +that Ralph had been standing by the old dower-chest in the corridor +and that he had had a paper in his hand. So far as Dashwood knew, the +old chest had not been opened for years. It was by no means a bad +hiding-place. Perhaps---- + +Slowly the sick man dragged himself to his feet. He had promised Mary +that he would lie quietly there till the morning, but he could not +find it in his heart to keep that promise. Sleep was out of the +question. Dashwood looked at his watch to find that it was only just +half-past three, five hours before it would be time to rise. It seemed +like an eternity. And all the while that fiend, Horace Mayfield, was +sleeping under the same roof. Suppose he had been listening to what +was going on. Suppose that he had had his suspicions attracted to the +dower-chest! The mere thought was intolerable; it was impossible to +lie there with such a torture praying on his mind. And the house was +as still as death. + +Sir George lighted his candle, though the bright summer dawn was +creeping up from the east and the birds were beginning to twitter +outside in the garden. The long corridor was getting pink and saffron +with the strengthening colour from the great window. And under it lay +the object of the sick man's search. Here it was with the lid +unfastened and a mass of papers on the top. The first document was +long in shape, neatly folded, and bearing an endorsement in a legal +hand. The paper was yellow and faded, but the ink was quite plain for +the eye to read. Yes, here it was, right enough, the yellow paper that +meant happiness to all and the full splendour of the house of +Dashwood. + +"How did he know, how did he discover it?" Sir George muttered. "My +hands are so shaky that I can hardly hold the paper. The will of Sir +Ralph Dashwood, dated 1877, and duly witnessed by the family lawyer +and his clerk. . . . Provided that for the space of twenty years after +this date my son Ralph does not appear either by himself or by the +heir or heirs male of his body. . . . Ah, six months more and the +property comes to me absolutely! Strange that the will should come to +light so near to the time appointed by Sir Ralph for--but that hardly +helps me, seeing that my danger is so close at hand. . . . What is +this? A deed executed by Ralph Dashwood the younger cutting off the +entail. . . . I wonder where that is? Perhaps the yellow sheet of +parchment lying by the side of the will. . . . By Heavens it is! Oh, +this is a direct interposition of Providence to save the good old name +from disgrace. And this is what Ralph Darnley was looking for as a +pleasant surprise for me. Armed with these documents, I can raise all +the money necessary. I can kick Horace Mayfield out of the house, I +can----" + +The speaker staggered to his feet and pressed his hands to his +throbbing, reeling head. + +He was nearer to collapse again than he knew. He would have denied the +fact that he was terribly afraid of Mayfield, but it was true all the +same. The aim of the financier had never been quite hidden from his +eyes; for some time past he had an instinctive knowledge of what +Mayfield was after. His family pride had bidden him to have no more of +Mayfield, but he had not listened. Proud as he was, he had not +hesitated to stoop to gambling transactions, with the risk that he +would not be able to pay his debts if he lost. Surely he deserved a +sharp lesson and a cruel awakening. + +But he was free now, fortune was on his side. His great good luck sent +him trembling from head to foot like some amazed criminal who has been +discharged by a stupid jury. He would have to give up nothing. He was +still Sir George Dashwood with a grand estate, and a house with a +history of three hundred years behind it. He would go to London +tomorrow with those papers in his possession and his bankers would be +ready to accommodate him to any amount in reason. He would pay the sum +that Mayfield had mentioned, and wash his hands of the whole +transaction. He would show the world how a country gentleman deals +with these things. It never struck Dashwood that he was a feeble +creature who had juggled with the good name that he proposed to hold +so highly; he little realized the deep self-abnegation that had led to +this dazzling piece of good fortune. + +"Kick Mayfield out," he repeated, "after breakfast. Let him see that I +am not in the least afraid of him; make him understand that we are +little better than strangers for the future. Ah, that will be a +triumph." + +He hugged the papers to his breast, like a mother with a child. There +were weak and senile tears in his eyes. He had lost nothing after all; +the fine old house, the wide and well-kept estate, the great timber in +the park and the deer there, were all his. He started as the sound of +a footstep fell upon his ears. It seemed to him that somebody was +creeping along the corridor. Perhaps it was Mayfield, who had found +out what had happened. Mayfield was strong and unscrupulous, and he +might try to gain possession of those papers by force. Sir George +would have hidden himself, but it was too late, and besides it was +broad daylight now. + +The first rays of the morning sun shone on the old man as he stood +there huddling those precious papers to his breast. He might have been +some clumsy thief detected in the act. With a sigh of relief he +recognized the figure of Slight coming in his direction. The old +butler only looked a shade less distracted than his master, and his +eyes were drawn and haggard; obviously he had not been to bed. + +"What--what are you doing here?" Sir George stammered. "Why are you +spying upon me like this? Why are you down so early?" + +Slight made no reply. His gaze was fixed in a dazed kind of way on the +papers which Sir George was still hugging to his breast. There was +something like horror in the old man's eyes. There might have been the +proofs of murder there. + +"So you've got them," he said in the voice of one who talks to +himself. "So he has carried out his threat and they have passed into +your possession. Take and burn them, take and pitch them on the fire, +and watch them till the last ash has vanished. You will be a happier +man for it, Sir George, and a great wrong will be averted." + +"What does the man mean?" Sir George cried in astonishment. "Slight, +what are you talking about? Say it all over again. If you are mad or +drunk----" + +"Not mad," Slight said mournfully. He seemed to have come to his +senses suddenly. He spoke now as one does when acting under a great +restraint. "Not mad, Sir George, and as to the other thing, why. . . . +But the secret is not mine. I promised solemnly not to open my lips. I +have given you the best advice one man can give another, but more I +dare not say. Burn them, burn them, burn them, for the love of +Heaven!" + +Slight turned away and seemed to totter down the corridor. The full +light of the strong morning sun was shining through the gold and +crimson glories of the great stained glass window now, the birds were +singing sweetly outside. The park grew fair and green as the dew +rolled back across the fields; the garden blazed in the sunshine. Sir +George saw all this as he looked through his bedroom window. The +fierce joy and pride of undisputed possession were upon him; +everything was safe now. + +"Slight is mad," he murmured. "What does that old man know? What can +he know? Let me put these papers away where they will be safe. How +shaky I feel; how my head swims! If I could only get an hour or two of +sleep. . . ." + + + + +CHAPTER IX. +THE PARTING GUEST + + +The big clock on the breakfast-room mantelpiece was chiming the hour +of ten as Sir George came downstairs. He was a little later than +usual, and he apologized to his guest for his want of punctuality with +a courtly air. He was not accustomed to country hours, he said; he +doubted if he ever should be. He made no allusion whatever to his last +night's quarrel, his manner was perfectly natural and easy. If +anything, there was a suggestion of bland patronage in his tone. + +Mayfield glanced keenly at his host from time to time. There was +something here that he quite failed to understand. He had expected to +find Sir George apologetic and rather frightened. On the contrary, he +was more like a bishop who entertains a curate than anything else. And +Mayfield could get nothing from Mary, who sat at the head of the +table, cold and stately, yet serenely beautiful, in her white cotton +dress. Mayfield ground his teeth together and swore that Dashwood +should pay for this before long. He held the fortunes of the baronet +in the hollow of his hand; his passion for Mary was the more inflamed +by her icy coldness. It would be good to humble her pride in the dust, +to compel her to come to his feet and do his bidding. All the same, +Mayfield had made up his mind to have an explanation after breakfast. +He smiled and talked, though his anger was hot within him. + +"Mr. Mayfield will want a timetable presently, my dear," Sir George +was saying in his most courtly manner. "I am afraid that we have +intruded too long already on his valuable time." + +"I have always time to spare for you," Mayfield said with a snarling +smile. "And Miss Mary need not trouble about the timetable. You +forget that I have my car here which will get me to London by mid-day. +Before I go I should like to have a few words with you, Sir George. +You will pardon me for mentioning it, but we left matters in rather an +unsatisfactory condition last night." + +The little shaft passed harmlessly over Sir George's head. He smiled +blandly. + +"To be sure we did," he said. "You are quite right, we will settle +things up before you go. What do you say to a cigar on the terrace +after breakfast? No, you need not go, Mary. I have a reason for asking +you to listen to our business conversation. We had a quarrel last +night, when I regret to say I lost my temper. For that exhibition of +unseemly and vulgar violence I sincerely beg your pardon, Mayfield. I +apologize all the more humbly because we are not likely to meet very +often in the future. Henceforth our business transactions promise to +be slender, for after this week I am determined that the City shall +not see me again. You will quite see, Mayfield, that in future our +intercourse must cease. It is rather painful to talk to a guest like +this, but you will understand me." + +Mayfield's face expressed his astonishment. He wondered if Sir George +had taken leave of his senses, and deluded himself into the belief +that he was the possessor of a vast fortune. And yet the speaker was +absolutely calm and collected. What could possibly have happened since +last night to change him like this? + +"Perhaps I am rather dense this morning," Mayfield said slowly, "but I +cannot follow you at all. Yesterday I explained to you the position of +affairs fully. We had been deceived by a trusted servant of mine, and +you were called upon to pay £50,000. Failing this, you would perhaps +have to face a criminal charge. Unfortunately, your hold upon the +estate is so slender that it would not be possible for you to borrow +any large sum of money. Not to speak too plainly, your position was, +and is, a desperate one. Partly because I was in a measure +instrumental in bringing about this lamentable state of affairs, I +offered to advance you the money. In other words, I offered to give +you £50,000. It is true there was a condition, but I merely allude to +that in the presence of Miss Dashwood." + +Mary's face flamed. Her heart was heavy within her. So far as she +could see, this was the master of the situation. He held the demons of +Disgrace and Bankruptcy at bay. What was the cherished possession of +Dashwood worth so long as the shadow of dishonour lay across the +threshold? For the sake of the grand old home and the grand old name, +Mary would have to listen to Mayfield's proposal. She glanced from him +to the smiling face of her father, who had risen from the table and +produced his cigar case. + +"Quite so," he said genially, "you are perfectly correct. You made +that proposal, and, like a cur, I forgot myself and insulted you. I +went so far as to say that you had planned deliberately to bring this +thing about. It was ruin on the one hand and the sacrifice of my dear +child on the other. Pray take one of my cigars. There are chairs on +the terrace, let us continue our discussion there." + +"Why go over the old ground again?" Mayfield asked impatiently. He +flung himself into one of the big basket chairs on the terrace. "Has +there been any material change in the position since last night? Not a +bit of it. If you could find this money----" + +"There is no if about it, my good Mayfield," Sir George replied. "I +can find the money. It will be paid over to my creditors by the end of +the week, and I will take care to let the world know what a victim I +have been. The money will be paid." + +A quick angry cry came from Mayfield's lips. The mask had fallen from +his face for the moment. His disappointment was clear and hideous. + +"What?" he exclaimed hoarsely. "Do you mean to say that you have found +the wi----" + +He paused and shut his lips together with a vicious click. He was +going to say too much. He glanced at Sir George to see if the +imprudent words had had any effect on him, but the head of the +Dashwoods seemed to be immersed in his own pleasant thoughts. Only +Mary noticed, but it was not till many days afterwards that she was to +attach any significance to the speech. + +"The money is going to be paid," Sir George went on. "By the end of +the week I shall have finished with the City forever. I am not going +to make any accusation, but in the clearing of my own name I shall not +give any heed to others. Amongst the 'others' I need not say I am +alluding to you." + +"And there I am kicked downstairs," Mayfield said bitterly. + +"If you like to put it so. I could speak a little more freely if you +were not my guest at the present moment. But you quite understand me." + +"Your patience will not be unduly taxed," Mayfield said grimly. "If I +am not mistaken there is my car under the portico at this moment. But, +before I go, I have something to say. You will not forget your +personal obligation to me." + +"A matter of £5,000. I assure you it had not escaped my memory. By the +end of the week----" + +"Quite so. By the end of the week. You wanted that money badly at the +time. I lent it you on the condition that you allowed me to take a +judgment for the debt. I brought a friendly action against you to +recover the money, and you allowed judgment to go by default. It is a +little formula that is sometimes gone through in the City, Miss Mary, +to enable one or more fortunate creditors to have the preference over +the rest. When I signed judgment I was in a position to levy execution +as it is called. That is another technical expression that means that +I am in a position now to place men in possession here and to hold +everything till the debt and costs are paid in full. In vulgar circles +this is called 'having the bailiffs in.' It happens with such people +as struggling tradesmen and the like who cannot pay their rent. It is +held to be a terrible disgrace amongst the poor. Common men come in +and take possession of the drawing-room, where they smoke clay pipes +and drink beer. Try to imagine a dirty creature of this kind with his +feet on your Louis Quinze furniture, Miss Mary. The very idea causes +you to look pale and ghastly. And yet such things have happened, and +history is always repeating itself." + +The speaker paused and smiled, his words were horribly slow and +grating. Mary laid her hand on her heart as if some sharp fear +thrilled her. + +"Is--is it possible for you to do this thing?" she asked. + +"Indeed it is," said Mayfield with the same hard smile. "I could do it +today--as soon as I reach town, in fact. Quite like a scene from a +modern melodrama, is it not? Well, goodbye, Sir George; goodbye, Miss +Mary. I see my luggage is on the car and my chauffeur is waiting. I +will not intrude myself on you any longer. When my slaves of the law, +with their clay pipes and dirty boots arrive, there will be no +necessity to ask them to have dinner at the same table as yourself. +Goodbye." + +With a sign of his hand, Mayfield motioned to his chauffeur. The great +car came along with a fuss and a clatter, and Mayfield sprang to the +side of the driver. He pulled off his hat with a gesture of mocking +humility and the car dashed away. Sir George sprang up, but too late. +The car was disappearing now in a cloud of dust down the drive. With a +face white as death Mary turned to her father. + +"Is this thing true?" she asked hoarsely. "Are you still in that man's +power? Is it quite impossible for you to get the money today?" + +"Quite," Sir George groaned. "I--I had forgotten that judgment. I +should have waited; I should not have shown my hand so soon. But he +will never do it; he was dismayed to find my position so strong; he +merely meant to frighten me." + +"He _will_ do it," Mary cried. "I saw it in his face, in his wicked +eyes. A disgrace like that would break my heart, father. What is to be +done to avert this awful calamity? No sacrifice could be too great. +And I can think of absolutely nothing!" + + + + +CHAPTER X. +SKIN DEEP + + +Mary spoke as one who is moved to the very core of her being. It was +not merely a painful and unpleasant incident that faced her, but +something in the nature of a great and overwhelming tragedy. The +girl's pride was part of her being. She accepted it naturally, as in +the order of establishing things. Usually she was brave enough. She +would have encountered any physical danger with coolness and courage, +but the mere suggestion of this outrage frightened her. + +Well, she could look to her father for assistance. He had behaved with +great fortitude during the recent interview with Mayfield; indeed, it +might be said that he emerged from the combat victoriously. Doubtless, +he could find some way out. The old blood had asserted itself before, +and it could do it again. + +"Why are you so silent?" Mary asked. "Tell me what is to be done. A +disgrace like that would be horrible--after such contamination, +Dashwood would never be the same to me again. Father, you have found a +way?" + +But Sir George made no reply. The bland and easy dignity had vanished, +the suave smile with which he had greeted Mayfield was not to be seen. +He had suddenly become a poor feeble wreck of a man again, and he +burst into senile tears. They were real tears, for Mary could see them +trickling down his face. She trembled with an alarm and anger that she +had never felt before. + +For tears formed no part of her woman's armour; she left them to +children and the fretful mothers of the poor. In all the traditions of +the house, there was no mention of tears. Both men and women had met +their misfortunes with hard faces and dry eyes. It had been left to +Mary to be ashamed of a male Dashwood. Perhaps there was something in +the bitter scorn of her face that caused Sir George furtively to +remove the tell-tale drops. + +"I'm not myself," he whined. "I have had a deal of trouble and +Mayfield is a great scoundrel. I had to have that money hurriedly--a +disastrous speculation. If I had not been high up in the service of my +country, it would not have mattered so much. But my creditors were +pressing, and Mayfield offered to help me. Of course, he wanted what +he called security. It seemed so natural when he explained to me. And +all the time he wanted to get me into his power." + +"Oh, why go over the same ground again?" Mary cried. "Something must +be done without delay. Those horrible men must not come here." + +"Perhaps it was only a threat on Mayfield's part," Sir George said +feebly. + +"It was nothing of the kind and you know it, father. There was deadly +malice in every word that he uttered. And before then you had got the +better of him. You acted like a true Dashwood--I was proud of you. And +now you sit there, and, oh, I cannot bring myself to say the hateful +word. Why did you behave so nobly a little while ago, and so cowardly +now? You seemed to have found a way out." + +"I had," Sir George whispered. "Last night you left me in the depths +of despair. I could not sleep, I could think of nothing but what you +told me about Ralph Darnley. I wondered if perhaps he was secretly my +enemy. Then it occurred to me that he was looking for some papers in +that old chest. I could not rest till I was satisfied; I also searched +the old chest. And what did I find? I found the late Sir Ralph +Dashwood's will and I found his unhappy son's deed cutting off the +entail. If no son of the second Ralph turns up within the next six +months, everything is mine. You can understand how the full force of +that discovery overwhelmed me. Here was a way out of all my +difficulties. That is why I was in a position to face Mayfield +fearlessly this morning. Within a week at the outside I could raise +the money to be clear of him. I had quite forgotten the smaller item. +I should have remembered it, I ought to have been smooth and smiling +before Mayfield's face until I was ready to be clear of him for ever. +And now he can strike me a deadly blow before I am ready to meet it. +Of course the inconvenience----" + +"Inconvenience! Can you speak of so disgraceful a thing by such a +name? Dearly as I love the old house, I would rather see it and all +its treasures burnt to the ground. I could put the match to it +myself." + +Mary's voice rang out with passionate anger. Her blue eyes blazed. +There was no trace of exaggeration in what she said, she would have +been ready to carry out her threat. + +"It won't last long," Sir George muttered. "I'll go to London tomorrow +and take those papers with me. As soon as they have been verified, the +bank will advance me all I need. But business of this sort takes time. +People are very chary of parting with their money unless it is well +secured. Probably by the end of the week----" + +"The end of the week! And the blow may fall tonight! We must have that +money now." + +"Impossible, my dear child. I'm afraid you do not appreciate the +situation. When I came into the property I was heavily in debt. I had +to pay off those debts; also I had to keep up the house in a way that +befitted the traditions of the family. The consequence is that I am +constantly overdrawn at my bank as far as the people there allow it. +They don't like it, because they feel that if anything happened to me, +or some son of young Ralph Dashwood came along, I should find myself +not in--er--a position to meet all my liabilities. Therefore, to go to +them to raise this money would be worse than useless. I am afraid that +we shall have to put up with the inconvenience till the end of the +week, when those papers I found will have been properly verified." + +Mary restrained the passionate anger that flamed within her. It was a +cruel blow to find her father so wanting in courage when the critical +moment came. He was prepared to sit down and weep, when hourly the +danger was drawing nearer. Instinctively Mary's thoughts went out to +Ralph Darnley. He would not have taken the blow like this, though he +had not the good fortune to call himself a Dashwood. He would be up +and doing. Perhaps it would be as well to consult him and ask his +advice. She felt ashamed of herself as the thought occurred to her. +And yet she had no other friend in the world. Despite her exalted +position, Mary was a very lonely girl. + +What was the use of all her pride? This splendid isolation faded to +ashes now that she was face to face with the task before her. +Evidently her father meant to do nothing, he would submit tamely to +the degradation and wait for it to pass. + +There were dead and gone Dashwoods smiling, or simpering, or frowning +from the walls--soldiers and statesmen, scholars, famous beauties, and +not one of them had ever seen the tainting of the family name. It was +left to Sir George to submit tamely to that. Mary could see that his +eyes were still wet. + +"Something must be done," she said. "Are there no jewels that one +could turn into cash? Strange that I have never given a thought before +to the family jewels! But surely in a family like ours there must be +historic diamonds and the like. Did I not hear once from somebody that +the Dashwood emeralds are unique? I am told that it is no uncommon +thing for great ladies to take these jewels to men in London who +advance money on them. I have listened to such stories with +incredulity--I begin to see now why things like this have to be done. +Let me have them and I will go to London this afternoon. My cheeks +flame with shame when I think of it; but I suppose there are harder +tests of one's endurance. Where are they, father?" + +"They are not here," he said. "I believe there are some magnificent +heirlooms in the way of family gems, but they are not in my +possession. You see we are merely a collateral branch of the old tree, +so we have nothing to do with the jewels. At present I understand they +are in the possession of the dowager Lady Dashwood. They came to her +as a matter of right on her marriage, and I am told that she has +retained them ever since. If her son had lived and come to the title +and married, then his wife would have taken the stones as a matter of +right, being the wife of the reigning head of the family. Whether or +not they would come to you on your marriage is another question. +Anyway, you would have the right of wearing them after the dowager +dies. But this is a matter about which I know really nothing. As you +are aware, my dear, Lady Dashwood does not like me. For some reason or +another she has a violent prejudice against me, and she never asks me +to the dower house if she can help it. Of course with you the thing is +different--she brought you up and regards you more or less as her own +child. It is just possible that she may tide us over the difficulty." + +"Which means that you will go and ask her," Mary said eagerly. + +"By no means, my dear," Sir George responded. "I could not stoop to +ask a favour of that kind from any woman, however pressing the +necessity. It seems to me to be more a question between one woman and +another. Now from you, the request would seem quite natural. If you +care to undertake it----" + +But Mary heard no more. She could not trust herself to reply. Slowly +and coldly she walked from the room, her hands locked convulsively +together. Truly the family pride was a shattered reed to lean on, a +skin deep thing after all. And the strong capable face of Ralph +Darnley rose like a warm vision before her. + + + + +CHAPTER XI. +THE DOWAGER LADY DASHWOOD + + +The silent moody dinner was over at length; Slight was placing the +dessert on the shining mahogany. Mary rose presently and walked over +to the open window. Over the park the moon was gleaming like a silver +shield against the pallid sky; the deer moved like ghosts in the +pearly dew. It was more sweet and peaceful than ever, and yet Mary +dwelt bitterly on the mockery of it all. What an enviable mortal she +appeared to be, and yet how little did she deserve that envy. The +hours had crept on and the thunderbolt had not yet fallen. Perhaps the +blow would be delayed till tomorrow, which was a soothing reflection, +for nothing had as yet been done, though Mary had made up her mind to +invoke the aid of Lady Dashwood. She had not been across to the dower +house yet, for Lady Dashwood had gone out on one of her rare visits to +a neighbour, and at seven o'clock had not returned. There would be +plenty of time afterwards, and Mary stood by the window, drinking in +the full beauty of the night. She had made up her mind to tell Lady +Dashwood everything and throw herself upon the elder woman's mercy. +She turned to her father, who was gently complaining to Slight of the +quality of the claret he was pouring out. + +"I am going to the dower house now," the girl said coldly. How could a +man be so trivial at such a moment, she wondered. "I may be late, +father." + +Sir George murmured something in reply. He was still absorbed in the +contemplation of his glass. He had evidently forgotten the importance +of Mary's errand. The girl was very chill and her heart very cold and +empty and lonely as she passed down the old elm avenue and through a +path leading by a great belt of evergreens to the grounds of the dower +house beyond. It was a Tudor mansion a little older than the Hall +itself, and it boasted some wonderful gates and a rose garden famous +throughout the county. The whole façade of the house was covered with +roses, too, and the night air was heavy with their fragrance. The back +of the house looked on a green forecourt, and a long conservatory led +to a set of cloisters, which made a deliciously cool spot in the hot +weather. There Mary usually found her aged relative, but she was in +the drawing-room tonight. She rose as the girl entered, a tall figure +with a mass of white hair done up in some old fashion that was not +without its charm. Lady Dashwood's face was white as her hair, and it +bore the impress of some great and lasting trouble that never would +fade away on this side of the grave. Her eyes had the same haunting +care in them, the same suggestion of remorse. A keen observer might +have been justified in regarding Lady Dashwood as a woman who was +being weighed down with the burden of a terrible secret. + +But her smile was sincere enough as Mary came forward; her slim hands +shook as she laid them on the girl's shoulders and kissed her. Then +she seemed to discern that something was wrong, for she sighed as she +looked into Mary's face. + +"Sit down, dearest," she said tenderly. "It is very good of you to +come and see me so late. But there is something the matter, Mary. I +have not known and loved you all these years without being able to +read that transparent mind of yours. What is it dear? You know that I +will do anything in the wide world to save you from unhappiness." + +"Dearest of foster mothers, I know it," Mary whispered. She blinked +away the rare tears that would rise to her eyes. "It is selfish of me +to come and worry you at this time of night, but there is no help for +it. We are in great distress." + +"Does that mean your father as well as yourself, or rather that you +are worrying about him? What has he been doing now to cause you all +this anxiety? Something to do with those speculations over which I +have helped him more than once in the past." + +"Have you?" Mary asked with a startled blush. "He never told me. He +wrote to you----" + +"More than once, my dear. As heir presumptive to the estate, I suppose +he thought he had a right to do so. But I am afraid that I can't help +him again--at least, not just at present. But then I don't suppose it +is so very serious." + +"It is disgrace," Mary said in a low voice. "It means the intrusion of +strangers, men sent down to take what is called possession till the +debt is paid. It is a matter of £5,000, and it must be obtained at +once--before mid-day tomorrow. Perhaps I had better tell you all about +it, but it would break my heart to see this disgrace fall on Dashwood. +Dearest, tell me that you will find me the money or the means to get +it!" + +Lady Dashwood made no reply for a moment. A still more ashen pallor +crept over her white face. She placed her hand to her heart as if to +still some poignant pain there, her rings shimmered and trembled in +the lamplight. + +"Tell me everything," she said huskily. "My punishment is coming, my +sin is finding me out at last." + +"Your sin?" Mary cried. "If ever there was a good woman in the world, +you are one. I hate to hear you speak like that, my more than mother. +Surely you must know how good and pure your life has always been. And +you talk like this! If there is any mystery here, any secret that lies +like a shadow over our house----" + +"Was ever a great family without its trouble?" Lady Dashwood asked. +"You must not take my foolish words quite so seriously, child. Perhaps +by brooding over them, one is apt to magnify troubles. So your father +has discovered this will and the deed by which my unhappy boy cut +himself off from his inheritance. Strange that the papers should be +found just now." + +"Why?" Mary asked. "Why just now? Did you know of their existence?" + +But Lady Dashwood made no reply. She seemed to be lost in a sea of +troubled thoughts. Mary did not repeat the question. After all, it +mattered very little either way. Lady Dashwood came to herself with a +start. + +"But we have the present to think of," she said. "Your father will be +able to do as he likes now, therefore the trouble caused by this +hostile creditor is all the more to be deplored. He is some business +man, I presume?" + +"Yes," Mary explained. "By birth a gentleman. His name is Horace +Mayfield." + +A startled cry came from Lady Dashwood's lips, the grey pallor was on +her face again. + +"Do you happen to know the man?" Mary asked. + +"Oh, yes; I know him and his family. A bad man, a hateful man. Never +mention his name to me again. Mary, he must be got rid of at all +costs. I have no great head for these things, but I see the necessity +of getting out of the hands of Horace Mayfield. As you say, in a +week's time it would not matter. As it is the thing is urgent. Is it +so utterly impossible to find this money?" + +"It is out of the question for us," Mary said haltingly. Her face was +burning now that she was coming to the pith of her errand. "My father +could not place his hand on a fifth part of the sum. I racked my +brains to find the way out. Then it occurred to me that there were +certain people who lent money on the security of jewels and valuable +plate, and things like that. I had never heard our family jewels +mentioned, but I felt quite sure that they existed. My father told me +that they were in your possession, that they belong to you so long as +I remain single. Dear mother, do you see what I mean? Do not put me to +the pain of having to speak more plainly. And it is only for so short +a time! By the end of the week the stones will be in your hands again. +I could go up to London in the morning and take the jewels to one of +the big dealers who do business of this kind. . . . The disgrace would +be averted. I hate to come here with a proposal like this, but I can +think of no other way. You are not going to refuse me this great +favour?" + +"You want me . . . to lend you . . . my jewels?" Lady Dashwood gasped. +There was no trace of anger or displeasure in her voice. She looked +strangely white and drawn, as if suddenly, years had been added to her +life. "How do you know I have any?" + +"I asked my father. No, he did not suggest it. He told me that our +family collection of stones was a famous one; he said that everything +was in your possession. Then in shame and agony of spirit I dragged +myself here to ask you to do this thing. My own proper pride held me +back, my family pride urged me on." + +"The curse of the race," Lady Dashwood cried. "The besetting sin of +the family will ruin us all yet. Heavens! the mischief that it has +brought about already. It made my wedded life a long intolerable +bondage, rendering me old before my time. It was responsible for the +great sin which caused my son to leave home for ever. And yet I fed +you on the family pride, I held it before you day by day until you +have grown so cold and hard that I alone know of the kind and generous +heart that beats within you. . . . But enough of this. You want me to +lend you some of my jewels. If I tell you I have none, what then?" + +"My father told me that they were in your possession, Lady Dashwood." + +"My child, you must not speak to me in that tone. It hurts me +dreadfully. Suppose the stones are gone, suppose that I have parted +with them one by one to preserve a fearful family secret! Suppose that +I parted with the last diamond yesterday! What would you say if I told +you that?" + +Lady Dashwood had suddenly lost her reason. Mary could see no other +explanation for this extraordinary speech. And yet the speaker looked +guilty enough, there was a shamed flush on her withered cheeks. She +rose from her seat and moved to the door. + +"Wait a moment," she said. "I may find a way yet. But my sin is going +to find me out and my sacrifice shall be all in vain." + + + + +CHAPTER XII. +LADY DASHWOOD SEES A GHOST + + +With faltering hesitation Lady Dashwood made her way into the dark +hall beyond the drawing-room. She bore little resemblance to the grand +dame that her friends knew. In spite of her silks, her laces and her +flashing rings, she looked like the ordinary woman who is suffering +from the burden of a great affliction. There were tears in her eyes as +she walked along. The house was strangely silent; no servants were to +be seen anywhere as Lady Dashwood reached a door leading to the green +forecourt with the cloisters beyond. She stepped out into the +moonlight slowly, she passed across the garden under the brown stone +archway that led to the cloisters. + +There she paused and looked about her furtively. There was nothing to +be seen but the shadows made by the moonlight. Like a thief in the +night Lady Dashwood crept along till she came at length to the end of +the cloisters, where there was a stairway leading to some dilapidated +apartment overhead. Once again there was a pause, and after that the +aged lady began to climb the stairs. At the same time there came the +unmistakable sound of voices overhead. + +Lady Dashwood started and almost lost her balance. The sound was so +unexpected, so utterly unlooked for. The voices were quite clear and +distinct, too, on the still air. Lady Dashwood had no desire to play +the eavesdropper, but it was impossible not to hear everything. The +one voice was low and pleasant, and yet clear and commanding. + +"I tell you it is impossible," the pleasant voice said. "You must +allow me to conduct this business in my own way. I have already given +you my word that everything will come out right in the long run. There +is still six months of the time to expire, remember, so that you need +do no violence to your conscience." + +"Yes, but you have not taken Lady Dashwood into your calculations, +sir," the other voice said. + +"Indeed I have, my good fellow. I have forgotten nothing. Everything +has been most carefully mapped out. As Lady Dashwood is more or less +of a recluse, there is nothing to be feared from her. It will be a +very easy matter to keep out of her way." + +The listener fell back, clutching at her heart wildly. She was +compelled to lean against the brown walls of the cloisters for +support. + +"I am dreaming," she murmured. "I shall awake presently and find +myself in bed. I am getting old and fanciful, and my mind is playing +me strange tricks. The owner of that voice has been dead for many +years; it is a mere chance resemblance. And yet it is as real as if I +had gone back over the wasted years. Is it possible----" + +The speaker paused. It seemed to her that the two men overhead were +coming down and she had no mind to be caught listening. She turned +away swiftly, her slim ankle in its satin slipper gave a turn and a +cry of pain escaped her. A moment later and Slight was by her side, +looking at her with mingled sympathy and suspicion. + +"Your ladyship has hurt yourself," he said. "Permit me to take you +back to the house. What are you doing here at this time in the +evening?" + +There was something almost masterful in the tone of the question. In +spite of the pain that she was suffering, Lady Dashwood turned a cold +displeased eye on the speaker. + +"You sometimes forget yourself, Slight," she said. "It is a failing of +old and privileged servants. Your place is over at the Hall. What are +you doing here? You were ever a man to do strange things in a strange +way. Have you some secret here?" + +"We have had many secrets together, my lady, and we may take most of +them to the grave with us," said Slight coolly. "I have been too long +a friend of the family to be treated like this. And your ladyship must +just come back to the house at once. You are in pain." + +"Pain or not, I am not going back yet, Slight. I came here for +something that I had left in one of the cloister chambers, and I heard +your voice. I should have thought little of that, for you are +permitted to come and go as you like. But you were not alone, you had +a companion with you. And I heard his voice, too, Slight." + +The withered old servant looked slightly confused. Then his dry face +grew hard and dogged. + +"I am not going to deny it, my lady," he said. "A--friend of mine, +who----" + +"Is a gentleman. No mistake about that, Slight, And the voice was so +like that of my poor dead boy that I almost died of the sound of it. +What does it mean, Slight; who are you hiding up there? I am going to +see." + +"Indeed, your ladyship is not going to do anything of the kind," said +Slight hastily. "Besides, my friend has gone. There is another way +from the cloister chamber, remember. And your ladyship has just got to +come back to the house." + +Lady Dashwood sighed impatiently. Slight had been her own servant for +nearly forty years, and she knew the dogged obstinacy of the man. She +knew his sterling honesty, too, and how faithful he could be to a +trust. + +"Very well," she said. "If there is anything to tell me, you will tell +it in your own way. But that voice startled me--it was like a voice +from the grave. It was as if my boy had come back to me once more. +Slight, if you are deceiving me----" + +"I'm not deceiving anybody," Slight said in an aggrieved voice. "I +leave that to my betters. If your ladyship will lean on my arm, I will +try to ease your foot as much as possible. The shortest way is to cut +across the grass." + +It was rather a slow process, for Lady Dashwood's foot was getting +painful. She came at length to the great stone doorway leading from +the forecourt into the house; she looked back over her shoulder, and +as she did so she grew almost rigid. + +"Look!" she whispered. "What did I tell you? Don't you see it, +Slight--the figure standing over there by the laurels in the +moonlight? See, the rays on his face. Don't tell me that my eyes +deceive me, Slight. It is my boy come back again." + +Slight muttered something under his breath. In reality he was +objurgating Ralph Darnley for his careless imprudence in standing +there with his face turned to the dower house. Yet the old man's frame +never moved a muscle. + +"What does your ladyship mean?" he asked. "I can see nothing." + +"That is because you are not looking in the right direction, Slight. +Over there by the laurels. Do you dare to tell me that a man is not +standing there? It is my son Ralph come back from the grave! The fine +figure, the gracious open face, the determined eyes. Has time stood +still with him that he looks so young? And yet it is forty years +since. . . . Ralph, Ralph, it is your mother who calls to you." + +The words rang out with startling stillness in the great cloister. The +young man standing there started and turned round. He had been +absolutely lost in a deep study, contemplating the old house. He came +tumbling down to earth again, and became conscious of a white-haired, +richly-dressed old lady who was holding out a pair of arms in his +direction. He could see the pleading, loving look on her face, he +noticed the menace and anger in Slight's eyes. Without further ado +Ralph stepped back into the bushes, his feet making no sound on the +mosy turf. It was like the slow diminishing of a dream. + +"He has gone," Lady Dashwood cried. "I have frightened him by my +notice. Did you not see him, Slight? Did you not observe the +extraordinary likeness?" + +"I saw nothing but a young man who was trespassing," Slight said +evasively. "Your ladyship is full of fancies tonight. You will laugh +at yourself in the morning." + +Once more Lady Dashwood sighed impatiently. She managed to drag +herself back to the drawing-room without the aid of Slight. She +dropped into a chair white and quivering, whilst Mary regarded her +with eyes filled with deep concern. + +"Something has happened to you," she said. "What is it? Can I do +anything?" + +"Nobody can do anything," Lady Dashwood whispered. "Mary, I have +seen a ghost. I not only saw the ghost, but I heard the vision speak. +And they wanted to persuade me that it was an old woman's foolish +fancy. . . . I meant to have done something for you tonight, but I +forget what it is and where I put it. I can think of nothing but my +ghost. And I want to be alone, my dear, you cannot think how much I +want to be alone! Ring for my maid now and go. Don't think me unkind, +my child. Come back in the morning, and I will try to help you in the +way you need. Kiss me and say goodnight." + +Mary bent down obediently and kissed the faded, unsteady lips. Her +errand had been more or less of a failure, but she could not pursue +the subject now. She could only ring the bell and depart as she had +come. To press the matter nearest her heart would have been wanting in +tact and delicacy. Very sorrowfully Mary took her way across the park +in the direction of the Hall. She would come back and see Lady +Dashwood after breakfast, and then if she could get what she required, +she would go to London at once and get matters settled by the family +solicitor. She might be an hour or two too late, but she had to risk +that. + +The drawing-room windows were open; on the terrace in front Sir George +was passing up and down with a distracted air. Mary could see that his +tie was ruffled and that his hair had been stirred as if by a high +wind. He paused as the girl spoke to him. + +"What is wrong?" she asked. "Has anything happened?" + +"The very worst," Sir George groaned. "They came soon after you had +gone . . . three of them. One in the servants' hall, one upstairs, and +one in there, the drawing-room. A foul man with a foul pipe. Look and +see the creature for yourself!" + + + + +CHAPTER XIII. +DESECRATION + + +A feeling of almost physical sickness held Mary for the moment. She +had dreaded this thing, and at the same time she had hoped against +it--it had seemed almost impossible that such a calamity could happen +to Dashwood Hall. Mary would have scoffed the idea that she regarded +ordinary humanity as different clay to herself, but it was so all the +same. It did not seem right that one in her station of life should be +called upon to suffer an indignity like this. + +And yet here it was, blatant and hideous, and so transparently vulgar! +Mary knew the full significance of the disaster; she had seen +something of it, two years before, in the house of one of the estate +farmers who had fallen into the hands of a money-lender. She had seen +the mother of the family bowed and distracted, whilst a gin-soddened +wretch sat in a priceless oak chair and puffed some dreadful tobacco. +And the man had been quite insolent when Mary had spoken to him. + +That was bad enough, but to have the same thing at Dashwood was a +thousand times worse. It seemed to Mary that she could catch the reek +of that vile tobacco now. But something had to be done; it was useless +to stand there idle. + +"Have you spoken to the people?" Mary asked. "The servants----" + +"Are all in bed except old Slight," Sir George whined. "Slight managed +that. The other servants don't know anything for the present." + +"Well, that is something gained. I have been to see Lady Dashwood. It +was the most shameful moment of my life, but I managed to ask for the +jewels. No, I did not get them--I don't believe that Lady Dashwood has +them. I believe that she has some secret trouble of her own; I begin +to believe that there is something terribly wrong with our family. +There is no hope from Lady Dashwood." + +Sir George whined in a feeble kind of way. Mary's heart overflowed +with bitter contempt. This was the head of the family, the man to be +relied upon to uphold the traditions of a long line of glorious +ancestors! The girl steeled herself to face the inevitable; she knew +now that she would have to rely solely on her own exertions. She +passed through the open window into the drawing-room, which would +never be quite the same to her again. Nothing appeared to be altered; +the soft shaded lamps were here, the mellow subdued light playing on +old furniture and pictures, and the flowers artistically arranged in +their priceless vases. Surely sorrow and shame and humiliation would +not touch the picture with chill fingers! + +There he was, lounging back on a Chippendale couch, with his muddy +boots on a hassock of Gobelin tapestry, his sullen face half-ashamed +and half-defiant. His profession would have been apparent to anyone +who had ever met one of the tribe before. Those men were of a race +apart, idlers and loafers, who can face sorrow and suffering and the +breaking up of homes without a spark of human feeling. The man looked +up at Mary's pale haughty face, with a certain dumb admiration in his +bleared eye. + +"Who are you, and what are you doing here?" Mary demanded. "Tell me +that." + +"It's all right," the object said, without removing his pipe. "There's +the docyment on that little marble table. Suit of Mayfield and Co., +£5,193 17_s_. 4_d_., debt and costs. If you pay within seven days, all +right; if you don't then the auctioneer comes in. No use making a fuss +about it. Pay us and we go, don't pay us and we stay. Treat us well, +and we'll treat you well. It isn't the first time I've been in swell +houses like this." + +The man was so coolly, unconsciously insolent that Mary could make no +reply for a moment. It seemed incredible that she, who had always had +the reverence of every man and boy in the village, could be treated +like this. Nothing seemed to pierce the creature's dull hide. + +"But you can't stay here," she said. "That is impossible. I suppose +the idea is to see that nothing is taken away. Nearly all the +furniture belongs to the family; most of the things are what are +called heirlooms. We could not dispose of them if we wanted to. We +could make you all comfortable in one of the empty lodges." + +"Won't do," the man on the sofa said huskily. "Had that game tried on +me lots of times. I sit up here all night, whilst my mates get a rest. +We take it turn and turn about. Better keep your breath to cool your +porridge. You can go to bed now without any fear of burglars. I'll see +that nothing goes away from here." + +Mary turned away, sore and helpless and sick at heart. She, who +despised tears so heartily in others, felt like bursting into +hysterical weeping now. The humiliation was almost more than she could +bear. She would have welcomed any calamity that was likely to +overwhelm the old house and lay it in grey ashes at her feet. +Fiercely, angrily, she grasped her father by the arm and led him from +the room. Sir George trotted along feebly, muttering in a small voice. +He was as useless as a woman in a storm at sea. He sat down in the +library with his hands folded in his lap, and looked anxiously for any +suggestion from Mary. + +"Is there nothing you can do?" she demanded impatiently. Could this +feeble, white-faced creature be the same jaunty, debonnaire figure +that had been so popular in the Paris salons? Mary asked herself. "Is +there no way out of the difficulty?" + +"I--I am afraid not," Sir George stammered. "I am so dazed and +confused that I can think of nothing. Most unfortunate that business +about Lady Dashwood and the diamonds. Wonder what she has done with +them. Very selfish of her." + +Mary suppressed a desire to scream. Ralph Darnley flashed into her +mind suddenly, and she wondered why. Anyway she could not ask him to +help her, even if he had the means to do so. She had repelled his +advances more or less scornfully, and one does not borrow money from a +man in conditions like that. + +"Lady Dashwood is powerless to help us," she said with an effort. +"Unless I am greatly mistaken, she has a sorrow far deeper than +ours----" + +"Impossible," Sir George said testily. "You are talking nonsense, my +dear. What blow could be heavier or harder to bear than ours? But I +trust that we shall meet it with proper dignity. Nothing can deprive +us of our dignity." + +Mary laughed aloud. The echo of her mirth came back mockingly in the +silence and almost frightened her. Heavens! was it possible that Sir +George had no idea of the pitiable figure he presented at that moment? +He went on to suggest fortitude and calmness. He had heard of the same +thing happening in the castle of a duke. Worse things had taken place +in the chateaux of the aristocracy in the French Revolution. + +"Ay, but they knew how to live and die like gentlefolk," Mary said +bitterly. "I understand that you are going to sit down and tamely +submit to this thing?" + +"My dearest child, how impetuous you are! There is nothing else to do. +By the end of the week I shall have more than enough for all my needs. +Still I think, I think that there is a way to get out of the +difficulty, without anybody being any the wiser. The remedy, however, +lies in your hands. Of course, it requires a certain amount of +self-sacrifice on your part. I am bound to confess that I could desire +other channels for the amelioration of the situation. Still, as I said +before----" + +The voice was cringing and fawning; there was something mean and +furtive on Sir George's face as he spoke his polished periods. A +certain sickness of heart gripped Mary; she was conscious of a +sensation of absolute fear. + +"Pray do not be diplomatic with me," she said. "I have seen so much of +that kind of thing in Paris. What are you concealing from me?" + +"Your tone is not filial," Sir George complained. "I did not mean to +tell you; I was going to spare you the pain. I thought perhaps you +would agree with me that patience was the best line to take. But I see +that you desire to strike a decisive blow; at any cost you long to get +those impossible creatures out of the house. Our boats are not +entirely burnt as you seem to imagine--one slender plank of safety +remains. Not to elaborate the thing too much, I may say I have had a +note from Mayfield. I should like you to read that note and consider +its inner meaning carefully. Mayfield has come down from London in his +car tonight, and is staying at his old fishing quarters at Swainson's +farm. He more or less apologizes for the course that he has taken, and +reminds me that friendship must not be mixed up with business. He does +not allude to the way in which I so flagrantly assaulted him, which +strikes me as being generous on his part----" + +"But he has come here to gloat over our misfortune," Mary cried. "I +see that my instinct did not play me false when I estimated the man." + +"There you go, there you go," Sir George said testily. "I gather from +the letter that Mayfield regrets his precipitate action. But, on the +other hand, he fears to lose his money. He wants a substantial +security for it. He says in his letter, which is an exceedingly +gentlemanly one, that an amicable understanding is quite easy. He +suggests that if you like to send for him and discuss the matter, he +has no doubt that affairs may be arranged." + +Mary started forward and laid a hand upon her heart. She was conscious +of a fierce pain there, as if the organ of her being had suddenly +stopped its beating. So this was the way out! She had only to smile, +to raise one pink finger, and the horrid miasma in the drawing-room +would fade like some unspeakable nightmare. Mary dropped into a chair +shaking in every limb. + + + + +CHAPTER XVI. +A FIERCE TEMPTATION + + +"And so that is what you mean!" Mary said slowly when at length she +had found sufficient breath to speak. "Stripped of empty phrases and +diplomatic trappings, I am to make a bargain with Horace Mayfield to +save the honour and reputation of our house." + +"Let me point out to you that the thing can be done tonight," Sir +George whispered. + +"Oh, I know that. That is why Horace Mayfield is here. He has returned +on purpose. He has carefully calculated the place where the wound is +likely to hurt most. He knows the full extent of my pride, my idolatry +for the old house and the old name. And I am to make a bargain with +him. I am to exchange myself for freedom from the disgrace and +humiliation. And that is a course that you seriously suggest." + +"I have not said so," Sir George muttered. He held his head down. He +could not meet the flashing blue scorn in his child's eyes. "These +things happen every day. Look at Lady Cynthia Greig. She married +Newman the financier, who started life goodness knows where. And she +was supposed to be the proudest girl in London." + +"Oh, I know. There was some whisper of a terrible family scandal +involving a deal of money. And the last time I saw Cynthia, she looked +like a beautiful white statue. There was a fierce, hard gladness in +her voice when she told me that she was dying of consumption. Yet, so +far as I know, Mr. Newman is an honest man." + +"Does not the same remark apply to Horace Mayfield?" + +"Certainly not. I judge him from your own lips. You declared that he +had robbed you of a large sum of money, that he had deliberately +worked it so that it appeared as if he had been defrauded by a +dishonest servant. And all this to get me in his power. And you did +not reply to that letter of Mr. Mayfield's with the scorn that it +deserved; you waited to hear what I had to say about it." + +Sir George protested mildly that he could do nothing else. But Mary +was not listening. She glanced at the familiar objects about her; she +passed over to the window and pulled up the blind. The moon was +shining peacefully upon the rose garden and tinting with silver glory +the old gates beyond, as it had done many times the last two hundred +years. It all looked so sweet and graceful, so refined and restful. No +shadow of disgrace had ever rested on the house before, no slander had +ever made a target of the house of Dashwood. And now the tongues of +the whole county would be wagging. The price to pay was a terrible +one, but Mary did not hesitate. It never occurred to her that she was +deliberately estranging the very pride that she hugged so closely to +her heart, that trouble and misfortune could be borne with dignity and +fortitude, that the gossip of the idle mattered nothing. She reached +out a hand to her father, and he understood. He took a note from his +pocket and passed it over to the girl. It was only a few lines that +Mayfield had written, but there was no mistaking their meaning. Mary +felt that the words had been written for her alone; very clearly the +issue had been thrown into her hands. She crossed over to a table and +began to write. She was burning and trembling from head to foot; +therefore she was surprised to see that her handwriting had never been +bolder and firmer. Without heading or ending of any kind she wrote +this message to Mayfield:-- + +"It is getting late now, but it is not too late to talk business to a +business man. I am sending you this at once, so that you may get it a +little after eleven. If you will be so good as to come over tonight we +may settle matters at once." + +She read the letter aloud and folded it calmly. Sir George nodded a +sort of shamefaced approval. Under his brows he had been watching Mary +with the keenest anxiety all the time. He knew that the girl's +scruples were justified; that he ought to have torn up Mayfield's +letter and treat it with the contemptuous silence that it deserved. +But he merely smiled and nodded his head. + +"I have done it," Mary said. "God knows the price that I am likely to +pay for my sacrifice, if the sacrifice is worthy of the occasion. +Where is Slight?" + +Slight replied to the bell in person. His small red face had an angry +flush; his grey hair stood up all over his head like a clothes brush. + +"Take this over to Swainson's farm," Mary said, "and wait for an +answer. The letter is for Mr. Mayfield, as you will see, Slight." + +The old butler drew back a few paces. He regarded the letter as if it +had been something noisome to sting him; his face grew obstinate and +dark and almost murderous. Slight was a fanatic in his way, as Mary +had noticed many times. + +"Beg pardon, miss," he said doggedly, "but I respectfully decline to +do anything of the sort." + +It was no time to argue with the old servant. And Slight was something +more than an ordinary butler; he was a friend of the family. Despite +his blunt refusal, his manner was as respectful as the most exacting +could have wished. Then he seemed to forget everything; his passion +broke out and burst all bonds. + +"I've been here for more than forty years," he said. "I was bred and +born on the estate, and on the property I hope to die. I know the +Dashwoods better than they know themselves. It's all pride, pride, and +nothing else matters. And it's part of your pride, Miss Mary, to make +terms with Mayfield, who is one of the greatest rascals that ever drew +breath. You may be surprised to hear me say this, but it's true. That +man has brought all this about. He's done it for his own ends. He's +waiting for you to own that he is master of the situation, and he +dictates his terms. And that he shall some day come here and lord it +over us is one of them. And it's your pride in the old house that is +going to play into his hands. Don't you do it, Miss Mary, don't you +let that scoundrel come here. If it happens----" + +"Silence," Mary cried. "Slight, you are forgetting yourself." + +"Maybe," Slight responded; "but I'm not forgetting you. And I won't +take that letter; not if I lost my place for it. Besides, I've got +something else to do. I've got to save you from yourself if possible." + +Slight turned quickly and left the room. With an exclamation of +annoyance, Sir George crossed the lawn in the direction of the +stables, with a view of calling upon one of the helpers there. By the +time he had succeeded, Mary was ready with her letter. She looked very +white and stern and proud as she stood there in the moonlight. The +fading light fell upon her neck and shoulders and turned them to +ivory. A fitting mistress for that grand old house, truly! She was +like one of Tennyson's cold and immaculate heroines, she had a sort of +fierce satisfaction in the knowledge that she came without a pang to +the altar of the family sacrifice. She was quite blind to her own +insensate folly; she would have been astonished to know that she was +doing a wrong thing. + +"Please take this note to Swainson's Farm for me, Walters," she said +in her sweetest manner. "It has been forgotten, and I am exceedingly +sorry to give you all this trouble. There is no occasion for you to +wait for an answer." + +Walters stammered something to the effect that it was a pleasure, and +went his way. In the distance, old Slight was stumping off across the +park with evident determination. A shade of annoyance crossed Sir +George's face. + +"We must get rid of that fellow," he said. "Really, the insolence of +these family retainers is past all bearing. You will see to this +tomorrow, Mary!" + +Mary made no reply. She was not in the least angry with old Slight. +She understood the old man's feelings exactly; she knew his love and +affection for her. Sir George's vapid attempts at conversation almost +drove her mad. She wanted to be alone to think. She passed into the +drawing-room, muttering that she had forgotten something. The lamps +were still burning, the great bronze clock chimed the hour of twelve. + +The dreadful object on the satin couch had fallen asleep; his shock +head was thrown back, and from his lips came a long and regular snore. +A poisonous scent of foul tobacco filled the air. Surely no sacrifice +would be too great to get rid of this, Mary told herself. Mayfield +would come along presently like some malignant fairy; he would wave +his wand, and this terrible invasion would disappear as if it had +never been at all. + +But Mayfield would demand his price. Of that Mary had no doubt. For a +long time now the girl had known that he cared for her. He had made no +effort to disguise his feelings from the time that they had met in +Paris two years ago, when Mary was paying one of her visits to her +father in the French capital. And Mayfield was of the class of men who +always get their own way. Sooner or later Mary would be absolute +mistress of Dashwood Hall, and it was no mean thing for a man to have +the chance of sharing such a home with his wife. + +But the cost of it all; the sacrifice entailed! From the bottom of her +heart Mary loathed and despised the man who was plotting to make her +his wife. She knew him to be an utterly unscrupulous rascal, a fitting +instrument to sway the dishonour of the Dashwoods. A few days more of +this unspeakable degradation and Mayfield would be powerless. It was +only a matter of making the neighbours talk, of tittle-tattle at tea +tables. And in a few days it would all be forgotten. Other people had +gone through the same humiliation and had come out of it as if nothing +had happened, but they were not Dashwoods. . . . A long snore came +from the figure on the couch, and the man stirred uneasily. + + + + +CHAPTER XV. +NOT QUITE TOO LATE + + +Mary seemed to flame from head to foot. The momentary hesitation +passed. No, it was quite impossible to support this kind of thing for +the best part of a week; the thought of slanderous, wagging tongues +was unendurable. At any cost these creatures must be removed; even the +servants must know nothing. So far as Slight was concerned, he was +absolutely to be trusted. Mary's mind was made up for good and all. + +Time was passing more quickly than she knew. As she stood there the +clock chimed the half-hour after midnight. A few minutes later and +Mary heard her father calling her. She understood him to say that +Mayfield had arrived. + +"Let him come here," the girl said independently. "I am quite ready." + +Sir George shuffled off again in the direction of the library, where +Mayfield stood on the mat before the fireplace smoking a cigarette. +There was not the slightest suggestion of triumph about him, his +face was calm and set. He looked like some under-secretary who is +about to read statistics to a House of bored listeners. He had left +his eye-glass behind him, so that the cynical expression was absent. + +"She's in the drawing-room," Sir George said. His manner was almost +cringing. "She--she prefers to discuss the matter with you alone. +Perhaps she thinks that you are more likely to listen to her than to +me--Mayfield." + +"She's right there," Mayfield said almost brutally. "It is a matter +between ourselves. Sorry to put you to all this inconvenience, +Dashwood, but there was no other way of teaching the lesson. But you +need not worry, half an hour will see the whole matter settled, and +even your servants will not be any the wiser. I arranged the thing so +that you should have the maximum of experience at the minimum of +inconvenience." + +Sir George muttered something to the effect that his companion was +very thoughtful. There was not an atom of fight left in him, and he +took no heed of anything but his own personal comfort. The sooner +Mayfield and Mary came to an understanding and those cattle were +cleared out of the house, the better. After that Sir George could go +to bed. + +Without undue haste or eagerness, Mayfield passed into the +drawing-room. There was just a sardonic touch in his smile as he +noticed the snoring hog on the yellow satin lounge. He quite +understood why a sight like that could touch Mary's pride to the +quick. Strange what queer pawns in the game of life a clever man had +to use at times! Mary was standing in the window-frame looking out +into the night. Everything seemed so still and peaceful; there was no +jarring note save the snore of the man in possession. Mayfield just +touched Mary on the arm and she turned. Her face flushed for an +instant, and then it became deadly pale again. + +"Not in there," she said, "I cannot breathe in the house tonight. Do +you know what I should have done had this happened a century or two +ago?" + +Mayfield did not know, but he could give a pretty shrewd guess as he +glanced at the steely blue glitter in Mary's eyes. A certain pride of +possession thrilled him. + +"I think you know," Mary went on. "I should have asked you here to +discuss the matter, to appeal to your better nature. And when I failed +I should have killed you first and myself afterwards. I could do it +now if I had the weapon to my hand." + +Mayfield nodded. Far better to let Mary talk herself out, he told +himself cynically. She was not the sort of girl to yield without a +struggle, she was no frightened child to sue for terms. But in the +letter she had written to Mayfield she had sounded the note of +surrender. He was here now as conqueror; to see her walk out with all +the honours of war. And surely she was worth all the strategy if any +woman was, the tall, fair beauty with those flashing eyes and the skin +of alabaster glistening in the rays of the moonlight. A prize worth +the winning, a daughter of the gods, if ever there was one. + +"But these methods are out of date," Mary went on in the same bitter +strain. "I am told that they do things in different fashion today. You +have done me the honour to ask me to share your future life and I +refused the offer." + +"Why?" Mayfield asked. "My family is equally as good as your own." + +"I know it. But _noblesse oblige_. You are what you are. And so you +planned and plotted for this; with diabolical cunning you saw where +you could strike me in a fatal spot. You came here tonight in a +position to make your own terms." + +"Not quite," Mayfield said quietly. "There is another way for you. So +far as I understand your father is in a position to make his holding +sure in a few days. The house is large and the presence of a few +guests, however undesirable, makes little difference. It is, I admit, +not a nice thing to have one of the great unwashed smoking shag +tobacco in the drawing-room, but it is only a matter of days. The +matter is in your hands for you to decide as you please. I am not +going to coerce you." + +Mary laughed scornfully. The mirth sounded harshly against the silence +of the night; the man on the satin cushions stirred and made a +gurgling noise in his throat. Mary's mood suddenly changed and she +shuddered. She was bitterly conscious of her complete inability to do +anything. She had expected Mayfield to take his triumph openly; she +was just beginning to understand what a strong and dangerous foe he +could be. + +"You know how to gloss it," the girl said. "But there is going to be +no tacit ignoring of the real truth between you and me. You have +brought this all about to force my hand. You have calculated upon my +pride of race, and my pride of place. You know--nobody better--what +suffering this is likely to afford me. And you are in a position to +remove the pain and the humiliation with the stroke of a pen." + +"Yes, I could do that," Mayfield said, speaking as if the suggestion +threw an entirely new light on the situation. "As a matter of fact +the thing is absurdly simple. I have only to send a telegram to my +lawyer--one of your servants could take it to Longtown and despatch it +even at this late hour. My lawyer could come down by the morning mail, +getting here before six o'clock, and send those fellows packing. Then +the incident would be forgotten as one forgets an unpleasant dream. +You see, my resource is practically without a limit. I can meet you in +any way that you please." + +"I have felt that for some time," said Mary coldly. "And in return for +this--kindness!" + +"Surely there is no occasion for me to repeat my conditions! Besides, +'conditions' is not a pretty word to use in dealing with a lady. You +will not find your bonds irksome, you will not find in me a very +exacting lover. It can go out to the world that there is an engagement +between us and in due course a marriage will follow." + +Mayfield spoke quietly enough, but his looks belied his tone. There +was a fierce volcano under that placid exterior, a strong, consuming +passion, and a will to lead Mary when once Mayfield had the power over +her. Some instinct told the girl this. + +"It sounds prosaic enough," she said. "I suppose I must take you at +your word. And yet all the time I know perfectly well that I am doing +myself a great wrong in the eyes of God and man. I am not so strong as +I think--I am not strong enough to place my happiness before +humiliation. I must have time to think this over." + +"Take as much time as you like. I will come again tomorrow, if you +please. You shall not throw it in my teeth afterwards that I have +hurried you in any way." + +Mary sighed helplessly. The man was so strong and she was very, very +weak. She might have gained the full advantage of her pledged word and +broken it deliberately afterwards. It was the code of honour that +Mayfield would have possessed himself if he had seen any advantage by +so doing. "And suppose I play you false?" Mary asked. + +"You will never do that, I am not in the least afraid; I trust you +implicitly." + +Mary turned back, baffled and defeated at every turn. The night seemed +to have grown suddenly chill, for she shivered as she made her way +into the drawing-room. It wanted but a feather in the scale now, to +make up her mind for good and all. Her eyes were drawn by magnetic +attraction to the sprawling figure on the cushions. The harsh note +smote her like a thong. + +"Look at him," Mayfield whispered, "does it not fill you with pain? +And there he is likely to remain till the sight of him drives you +beyond endurance. One word from you and the loathsome episode is past. +Why do you not say the word and finish it?" + +The words seemed to sink into Mary's soul. Ralph Darnley flashed into +her mind, but she put his image resolutely aside. She pointed towards +the door. + +"You had better go," she said huskily, "go before I change my mind +again. You will find some telegram forms in the silver case on the +library table. Need I say any more than that? You can come back and +show me what you have written." + +Mayfield bowed and departed without showing the faintest indication of +his victory. Mary staggered across to the window, with her hands to +her dry, hot head. A shadow seemed to rise from the gravel of the +terrace, a shadow with a white face framed in grey hair, the form of +Lady Dashwood, limping a little, but otherwise strong and resolute. + +"You have been there long?" Mary asked. "You have been listening." + +"Yes, yes," Lady Dashwood said in a strange thrilling whisper, +"listening, and waiting for my chance. It is not too late yet, my +child. Thank God, I am in time. You must not do it, you must not heed, +for the sacrifice would be all in vain. Come, let me tell you what I +mean. You are not used to dealing with scoundrels--I am!" + + + + +CHAPTER XVI. +THE UNFINISHED WORD + + +Mary placed her hand to her head in utter bewilderment. The world +seemed to have changed in the last few hours. Hitherto, life at +Dashwood had progressed on oiled springs, calm and peaceful. There was +the regular decently appointed day, with its routine of refined +duties, the dinner and the pleasant contemplation of placid evenings. +Mary had swung like a proud planet in the still atmosphere. And now +everything had passed into the wildest topsy-turveydom. + +Even Lady Dashwood had altered. The quiet, self-contained woman, whose +very restfulness had been one of her greatest charms! The sweet +expression of her face had vanished; she looked aged and anxious, +almost fierce. + +"What does it all mean?" Mary asked. "What has come to everything and +everybody? It seems almost impossible to believe that here at +Dashwood----" + +"Trouble comes; but trouble comes everywhere. It enters the palace as +easily as the cottage, my child. And my fault, all of it. But come +outside and talk to me. Mary, you must have nothing to do with that +man!" + +"But how do you know?" Mary asked. "I--I am not yet certain myself. +Who could have told you anything?" + +"But you are certain, child. You had made up your mind. The misery of +your face tells me so. And you sent a note to that man. Would you have +done so unless you had made up your mind to surrender?" + +Mary looked down, and the red of shame flamed into her face. Come what +would, she could not turn to either side and escape humiliation. + +"Slight told me," Lady Dashwood went on. "He came to me at once. My +dear, you must not be angry with old Slight. He worships the very +ground you walk on; he would lay down his life for you. And he knows +everything; I shrewdly suspect that he knows even more than I do. +Slight is something more than a servant, he is a valued friend of the +family. And he came to me as I have said. He tells me that Horace +Mayfield has got his wicked fingers in here; that he has plotted to +make you his wife. That must not be, Mary, that must never take place. +Surely you can defy that man, can order him out of the house." + +"I could," Mary said slowly, "I am not afraid of him. As yet I have +not pledged my word. Still, I am quite helpless. Look into the +drawing-room and see for yourself. . . . That is what we have to put +up with, three of them for the best part of a week. By eight o'clock +tomorrow morning the servants will know everything; before the day is +out we will be the talk of the county. I could not show my face after +that. The degradation would make me old before my time. It is not as +if I cared nothing for Dashwood. I love every stick and stone of it, +the place is part of my being. It was your house for nearly forty +years. Can't you understand my feelings?" + +"I ought to," Lady Dashwood said bitterly. "It was I who first +fostered those feelings. I tended them; day and night I watered them +and fed them till they grew like a plant. With the lesson of the past +before my eyes, I encouraged your pride. And now it is the master +passion of your life. Everything has to be sacrificed to the old name +and the old place. As for me, I should not hesitate for a single +moment." + +"And never know the feeling of happiness again!" Mary cried. + +"Oh, my dear! happiness and I parted years ago. The old never expect +happiness; there are too many ghosts, too many gaps, and too many +memories. Peace is the greatest possession that one can expect at my +time of life. And if you do this vile thing, then I shall have to go +down to the grave without it. I am a wicked old woman; I am suffering +now because I dare not tell the truth; but rather than this wrong +shall be done, I will speak, though I made a death-bedside promise not +to do so. Suppose I told you that you have less right at Dashwood than +I have!" + +The last words came with a fierce whisper that struck a cold chill to +Mary's heart. Had Lady Dashwood suddenly lost her reason? But that +white quivering face had no dull insanity upon it; the dark eyes were +full of horror but not of madness. + +"What do you mean?" Mary asked. + +"I--I cannot tell you. I was sorry to say as much. Do you suppose that +Horace Mayfield loves you in the ordinary sense of the word?" + +"I believe he does, if that has anything to do with the question." + +"Dear child, that man is incapable of any such feeling. Love is a +sacred thing. Horace Mayfield is a cold-blooded and designing +scoundrel. Your beauty may inflame him, but there is no love behind. +He calculates that it will be no bad thing to call this his home. He +plays upon your sinful pride as a master plays the violin. He knows +that you would do anything, even to marrying him, to keep the scandal +away." + +"It is the only way," Mary said; "Horace Mayfield is too strong for +us. What is that?" + +Something stirred in the bushes close by, a crooning song was but half +audible. + +"It is your old nurse, Patience," Lady Dashwood explained. "She was +sitting with me tonight when Slight came over hot-foot with the news. +Patience has one of her lucid moods tonight. And Patience knows +everything. The secret is hers, too." + +"I am tired of this mystery," Mary said; "why is Patience Ray hiding +there?" + +A thin, bent figure emerged from the bushes; a dark withered face in a +frame of thin grey hair looked out. It was an old woman, toothless and +haggard, yet the eyes were sharp and shrewd now. For some years past +the aged creature had been suffering from decay, but there were +moments when her wit was as sharp and shrewd as ever. + +"I couldn't stay away, dearie," the thin piping voice said. "It was +like a mercy that God gave me back my mind tonight. The wicked old +woman may do a lot of good before she dies yet. Don't you do it, +dearie. Tell him that the proper owner is coming back to Dashwood, and +that your face is your only dowry. Because I've seen the heir, as I +knew that I should do before I die." + +"What is she talking about?" Mary asked in utter astonishment. +"Patience, explain yourself." + +But the old woman shook her head and refused to say any more. She +muttered to herself something about disgrace and the house of +Dashwood. + +"Smoke the rats out!" she cried shrilly and suddenly, "smoke them out! +It is the only way to clear Dashwood of such vermin. Put the match to +the faggot and burn them out. That's what I would do if I had my way. +And to think that it should come to this after all these years. +Mistress, mistress, what a couple of wicked old women we are." + +"We are that," Lady Dashwood said mournfully. She did not chide the +wild speaker's words as Mary had expected. "Our sin is going to find +us out, Patience. Mary, I implore you to do what I ask you. I implore +you to spare me the pain of a full confession. Send the man about his +business and have none of him." + +There was passionate entreaty in Lady Dashwood's tone, so that Mary +was troubled in more ways than one. The heart pulled her one way, +pride and reason another. And behind it all was a haunting sense that +something was terribly wrong here. There was some dreadful meaning +underlying the wild words of old Patience. As Mary stood there, cold +and dispassionate in the moonlight, Horace Mayfield emerged with a +telegram form in his hand. + +"I have been some little time," he explained, "the forms were mislaid. +But what is the meaning of this, Miss Mary? Surely it is late for Lady +Dashwood to be abroad." + +Mayfield spoke calmly enough, but his eyes looked troubled. He glanced +from one to the other of the group anxiously. + +"I came to see Mary," Lady Dashwood said coldly. In some magical way +she had recovered her self-possession. She was cold and collected, a +veritable _grande dame_ in the presence of an inferior. "I had +received certain information as to what has recently taken place here. +It seems that Sir George Dashwood is under obligations to you, and +that as these obligations have not been satisfied, you have put the +law in motion. In the language of unfortunate people in a lower walk +of life, you have 'put the bailiffs in.' It probably occurred to you +that this would cause Miss Dashwood a deal of suffering!" + +Mayfield bowed with exaggerated politeness. + +"We have known each other a long time, Lady Dashwood," he said. "We +have had some business transactions together, and you have never been +at any great pains to conceal your opinion of me. Therefore, I should +gain nothing by an endeavour now to appear in a more favourable light +in your eyes. To be candid, when I set the law in motion, I was not +blind to the fact that my action would cause Miss Dashwood a certain +anxiety." + +"Shameless!" Lady Dashwood cried, "more shameless than I expected." + +"Smoke them out!" came shrilly from the lips of the old woman, "Burn +the rats out! Put the firewood and the candle together and burn out +the vermin! Burn Horace Mayfield! Burn him and the other rascals in a +pile together!" + +Mayfield started, he seemed as if about to say something, then +apparently he changed his mind, and ignored the speaker altogether. + +"As you please," he said, "I shall be glad to have your views on the +matter." + + + + +CHAPTER XVII. +BREATHING TIME + + +"I had no intention of seeing you," Lady Dashwood said. "To think that +you are the son of my dearest friend! It is well that she died before +she knew. I came here to see Mary, because I knew exactly how you had +played on her feelings. For purposes of your own, you have been diving +into the family history. Many things you have discovered, but many +things remain a secret to this day. Clever as you are, you have no +inkling of the shameful truth. If I chose to speak now, I could +disperse several of your pleasant dreams. I took an oath by the +bedside of a dying man to say nothing, and I have regretted my promise +ever since. A promise like that is a sacred thing; to break it is a +deadly sin. Yet there are some promises that God never intends one to +keep. Mine is one of them. So long as I alone suffer, it matters +little. But when others are to suffer for my silence, others whom I +love more than I love myself, then it is time to break the vow and let +the world know everything. By my silence I doom yonder beloved child +to lifelong misery. If you cared for her----" + +"Pardon me," Mayfield interrupted, "that is what I am trying to prove. +My methods may not commend themselves to you, but I hold that +everything is fair in love and----" + +"Hold," Lady Dashwood cried; "you pollute the word with your tongue. +What can you know of love in its better and higher sense? Would you be +standing here tonight if Mary were a pauper instead of heiress to +Dashwood Hall?" + +Mayfield had no reply for the moment. Clever man of the world as he +was, the question found him dumb. He could only fall back on the +commonplace. + +"Why put an impossible case?" he asked. "If it comes to that, +why are you here at all? Miss Mary and myself have come to an +understanding--the understanding will be complete as soon as I have +dispatched this telegram. We are going to stifle the voice of scandal +between us. Where is the young footman who was going to take the +message to Longtown?" + +"The message is not going to Longtown," Lady Dashwood whispered +hoarsely. "I can guess what that message means to my beloved child. +Mary, fetch your father here. The hour has come when God tells me that +I may break my word and speak." + +The flimsy telegram form crumpled in Mayfield's grip. His face had +turned deadly white with baffled fury. He fought down the anger in his +heart and forced a smile to his lips. + +"I am afraid we are all going too far," he said. "Let us wait till the +morning. Lady Dashwood gives me no credit for magnanimity, I know. I +am going to prove that she wrongs me. After all, I have other +resources. There are other ways than this." + +He tore up the telegram deliberately, and dropped the fragments on the +terrace. He must conciliate the old woman at any cost. It would not be +difficult, once she had gone, to get Mary to pledge her word. Deep +down in his heart, Mayfield was angrily wondering what secret Lady +Dashwood had to disclose. He could tell by the expression of her face +that it was something dramatic. He turned to Mary who was regarding +the fragments of the telegram with anxious eyes. + +"I am afraid I do not understand," she said, "I am so worn out and +tired that my brain seems incapable of grasping anything. I thought +that that telegram was going to be the means of removing those men and +averting scandal. If there is any other way of saving our house from +such a calamity----" + +"That can be managed," Mayfield smiled, "nothing easier. Come with me +a moment and I will show you how it is done. Perhaps Lady Dashwood +would also like to see----" + +"No, I am quite satisfied for the present," Lady Dashwood said coldly. +"Thank God, I have been able to save the situation. I understand that +you are staying at Swainson's Farm for tonight. As the farm is on my +way home, I shall be glad of your company so far, as there is +something that I wish to say to you. I will wait for you at the bottom +of the rose garden. Come along, Patience." + +The old bent woman muttered something and shook her head. She stood +there with her cunning, beady eyes fixed on the noble façade of the +old house. There broke from her a dry chuckle, as if her inmost +thoughts were not displeasing. + +"You let me alone, my lady," she said. "It isn't often as my mind is +as clear and bright as it is tonight. And don't you worry about Miss +Mary. I'm an old woman, and I'm not good for much, but I can prevent +that." + +A haggard, shaking hand was pointed to the entrance of the +drawing-room where Mary's figure stood out under the soft light of the +shaded lamps. Then Patience turned away and plunged into the bushes. +Again and again Lady Dashwood called softly, but no answer came. It +was peaceful and silent once more under the light of the waning moon. + +Mary had passed back into the drawing-room with Mayfield. The girl's +head was in a whirl. At the same time she could not forget Lady +Dashwood's warning and the strange hints she had dropped. Mayfield had +been impressed also, or he would not have been in such haste to tear +up the telegram. Why was he afraid of Lady Dashwood? How could he tell +that there was something under the surface? + +"Perhaps you had better explain to me," the girl said. "The events of +the past hour have puzzled me. You went to the library to procure a +telegram form. You were going to send a message to your solicitor +asking him to be here in the morning with authority to remove those +men. As they are your creatures, is it not possible for you to get rid +of them?" + +"No," Mayfield explained, "these people represent the sheriff. My +solicitor is acting for me in the matter, and there would be certain +formalities to go through before I could take matters out of his +hands. But there are ways of keeping such matters quiet that you +little dream of. . . . Wake up." + +The snoring creature on the yellow cushions turned over uneasily at a +vigorous application of Mayfield's foot and opened his eyes. He sat up +presently and demanded to know why he had been interfered with. There +was no civility in the man's manner; he evidently had no sympathy with +misfortune. + +"Speak in a proper manner," Mayfield said sternly. "I happen to know +that you will be out of this house in a few hours. There is nothing to +grin about, fellow. I suppose that you would not have the slightest +objection to earning £5?" + +"So long as it's all right, mister," the other growled, "but if you've +got some little game on and think that you are going to get me out of +the house----" + +"Nothing of the kind. Do I look like that kind of person?" + +"Never can tell, mister. I've had the dodge tried on with me by them +what has handles to their names. Still, there is no objection to +hearing what you've got to say." + +"That is very nice and obliging of you," Mayfield said grimly. "I am +going to make no effort to undermine your virtue. We do not want the +servants to know who you are or what you are doing. There's £5 cash +for you if you can manage this. I'm told it is often done. What do you +suggest?" + +As he spoke, Mayfield played thoughtfully with some sovereigns. The +big man grinned. + +"Now you are speaking fair," he said. "If people meet us all right and +don't regard us as convicts or bushrangers, why, we can meet other +people. The three of us have been in many a good house together. The +last time we came down to go over the place to give a proper estimate +for electric light. You've only got to look wise and potter about with +a foot rule and a notebook, and there you are! We can pretend to be +measuring outside when the servants come down in the morning, and I +daresay Sir George can arrange for our food to be given us somewhere +handy. Bless your life, there's many a way of doing it, if you'll give +me the brass for the other two chaps and settle it at once." + +Mayfield handed over a little pile of sovereigns and the man shuffled +off in the direction of the kitchen. Mayfield smiled at the success of +his errand. + +"There," he said; "I fancy that is all right. Only you must tell Sir +George exactly what has happened so that there is no confusion in the +morning. Sir George is thinking of having the electric light +installed. The men are here to take measurements. They will keep the +joke to themselves. You ought to be very much obliged to me." + +But no protestation of gratitude came from Mary's lips. The light of a +great scorn was still in her eyes. + +"Lies and prevarication and deceit," she said. "I seem to have found +myself in a very network of falsehood. The poorest girl on the estate +is happier than I am. It may be as you say, it may be that we shall +escape the tongue of scandal. But what are you going to do--how long +is the deception to go on?" + +"That depends on yourself," Mayfield said coolly. "You can defy me if +you like, and take the consequences. But it shall not be said that I +have treated you unfairly. That is why I am giving you another night +to think the matter over. Now go and tell Sir George what has +happened." + +Mary turned on her heel and left the room without another word. There +was a sinister smile on Mayfield's lips as he watched the girl's +drooping figure. + +"The thing will pass as far as she is concerned," he muttered. "And +now to tackle Lady Dashwood and have matters out with her." + + + + +CHAPTER XVIII. +A FLAMING SWORD + + +Mary dragged herself as far as the library. Sir George was pacing up +and down the room, trying to soothe his nerves with a cigar. + +"What a time you have been!" he said impatiently. "Why did you not +return before, knowing how anxious I should be? Mayfield came for a +telegram form, so I presume he has made matters right with you? Did +Walters take it?" + +"So far as I know, Walters has gone back to bed," Mary explained. "The +telegram was not sent, for reasons best known to Mr. Mayfield. There +is no occasion to be angry. It was no fault of mine--and has nothing +to do with me. Mr. Mayfield suggested that I should have another night +to think it over. It is not his code of honour----" + +"Code of honour! The fellow hasn't got one! There is no trusting him! +And now everybody will know of this disgrace of ours." + +"They won't. Mr. Mayfield has arranged all that. He seems to be clever +at this kind of thing. But perhaps I had better explain." + +The anger and irritation died out of Sir George's face as he listened. +He expressed no feeling of disgust or abhorrence at the trick to be +played upon his household; on the contrary, a suppressed chuckle broke +from him, a chuckle instantly smothered as he noticed the white scorn +on Mary's face. + +"I beg your pardon, my dear. Of course, it is all very wrong, but in +the circumstances, what else could we do? I have not the slightest +doubt that Mayfield will make it all right tomorrow. And now we must +go to bed." + +Mary turned aside and went wearily in the direction of the hall. +Usually, she gave her father a warm and dutiful kiss before retiring, +but she really felt that she could not do so tonight. She had always +freely expressed her contempt for tears as a woman's weapon and as a +solace in the hour of trouble. But the tears rose to her eyes now as +she thought of her father and the sorry part he had played. It seemed +almost incredible that the head of the house of Dashwood could act so +meanly. + +And she herself! How much better was she behaving in the hour of +trial? The girl's face flamed as she thought of it. In her heart of +hearts she knew that the proper thing would have been to face the +matter and see it out to the end. Yet her pride had impelled her to +make an appalling sacrifice to silence tongues that did not matter in +the least. What would Ralph Darnley have thought of it all had he +known? How strange that Ralph should come into Mary's mind now, she +told herself, strange that she should revert to him when danger +threatened. + +"You need not wait on me tonight, Kelly," Mary told her maid. "It is +so very late and I want to be alone. Have you been asleep in my chair +all this time?" + +The pretty little maid admitted that she had. She went her way +presently and Mary began slowly to undress. But tired as she was she +felt that somehow sleep tonight could not be for her. Usually, she +dropped off directly her head touched the pillow; the silence of the +old house was very soothing. But not tonight, for the place seemed +full of weird noises, the noises that the invalid hears when pain +prevents slumber. Mary lay there, but she could not sleep. It seemed +to her that somebody was moving about the corridor. Surely she heard a +footstep, and something like the scratch of a match. + +Mary rose and slipped on a dressing-gown. Candle in hand, she opened +the door. And, surely enough, she was not mistaken. A dark figure was +there, a figure that muttered and crooned, as if seeking something. +Mary approached the intruder. + +"Patience!" she exclaimed, "what are you doing here? And how did you +get into the house? I thought that you had returned to the dower house +with her ladyship." + +Patience looked up and smiled in a weak, watery kind of way. She was +not in the least afraid, and there was just a suggestion of slyness in +her aged, faded eyes. + +"I forgot something, my dearie," she said. "There was something that I +made up my mind to do and then I forgot clean about it. It was one of +my good nights, and my head was as clear as yours. Her ladyship told +me everything. But she didn't tell you everything because she dared +not. Ay, we are two sinful old women for certain." + +"Never mind about that," Mary said soothingly, "I daresay it will all +come right in the morning. But you should not have come here like +this. You had better lie down on the couch in my dressing-room and go +to sleep." + +"But there was something that I wanted to do," the old woman whined. +"I thought of a way of saving you, of saving everybody. And then it +clean went out of my head." + +Patience wrung her hands and the tears stood in her faded eyes. She +appeared to be deeply distressed about something. She stopped +suddenly, and stood alert and listening. + +"Did you hear that?" she demanded. "They are in the kitchen. All three +of them together! I saw them just now, but they did not see me. They +were laughing together, and one of them had gold, which he was +dividing with the rest. And they have come here to bring disgrace on +this noble house. And there was I standing close by with a way to get +rid of them in my head. . . . There was something that I wanted, and I +couldn't find it. So I came to look, and I forget what it was. Such a +beautiful plan, too, so very simple and yet perfect. My dearie, can't +you help me to think what it was? If you can only help me we shall get +rid of these men, and the trouble and disgrace will vanish, never to +return. It isn't often that I get a good idea in this poor head of +mine, and to forget it like that is cruel, cruel!" + +Patience wept a little, and began to wring her hands again. Mary's old +nurse had been in this state now for some years, though there were +times, for longer or shorter periods, when she was in possession of +all her faculties. She was not in the least dangerous; as a privileged +old servant she had been allowed to wander from one house to the other +at her pleasure. But Mary had never seen her so wild and excited +before, and the thing troubled her. + +"What do you know of our trouble?" she asked. + +"Her ladyship told me. It was something to do with some money that Sir +George owed to Mr. Mayfield, and which those men had come to get. And +her ladyship could not help you, for Mr. Vincent has made her sell all +her jewels already." + +Mary fairly started. Was it possible that she was on the track of +another family trouble, some new and black disgrace of which she had +hitherto known nothing? It seemed hardly fair to take advantage of a +weak-minded old woman in this, and yet-- + +"Who is this Mr. Vincent that you speak of?" Mary asked. + +"Her ladyship told me. It was something to do with some money that Sir +George owed to Mr. Mayfield, and which those men had come to get. And +her ladyship could not help you, for Mr. Vincent has made her sell all +her jewels already." + +Mary fairly started. Was it possible that she was on the track of +another family trouble, some new and black disgrace of which she had +hitherto known nothing? It seemed hardly fair to take advantage of a +weak-minded old woman in this, and yet-- + +"Who is this Mr. Vincent that you speak of?" Mary asked. + +"Mr. Vincent--that is all I can tell you. He is young and handsome, +and yet so wicked and unscrupulous. And it is to prevent him from +speaking out that my lady has sold all her jewels. They are not hers +to sell, but they have been disposed of all the same. I really do know +who Mr. Vincent is, and why he has such a hold over her ladyship, but +something gets in the way of my brain and I can't think what I ought +to say. And I'm so tired." + +The old woman suddenly dropped into a chair and began to whine like a +child that has walked too far. Mary was accustomed to these sudden +changes and knew how to humour them. She fairly lifted the old woman +from her seat and led her to the dressing-room. Obedient as a child +now, Patience lay down and closed her eyes. A moment later and she had +fallen into a placid sleep. Mary regarded her with eyes of envy. + +"After all she is better off than I am," she murmured, "and her +troubles are nearly over. What a blessing it is to be able to sleep +when you want to! And here am I on the brink of a fresh and darker +mystery than my own! I begin to understand now why Lady Dashwood looks +so haggard and worried. And what does this Vincent know, who can +blackmail my poor old second mother in this way! All the family +jewels, over £30,000. Oh, how sad it is to be almost without a friend +in the world! And yet Ralph Darnley promised me----" + +The colour rose to Mary's face as she pronounced Ralph's name. It was +the one reflection that sweetened her thoughts as she lay on her bed +waiting for the sleep that would not come. She turned from side to +side; she could see by the saffron gleam on the blind that the summer +dawn was close at hand. + +Then at last she fell off into a kind of fitful slumber that was a +mass of confused and hideous dreams. She was in some vague, indefinite +kind of trouble, tangled up with a scheme of Mayfield's, and across a +yawning gulf Ralph Darnley was holding out his hands to save her. And +then it seemed to her that Ralph kissed her, and that she did not in +the least mind it. After that they drifted apart again, and once more +the baleful influence of Mayfield was uppermost. They were falling +together down a deep pit with flames at the bottom; the fumes were so +great that Mary could not breathe. + + +She woke up with a gasp and a cry, struggling for breath. The whole +thing had been so vivid that Mary could not realise for a moment that +she was sitting up in bed. Yet there she was, with the early morning +sun shining through the blinds, and still she held her hand to her +throat and fought for the breath that would not come. + +Surely there must be something wrong here! Why was the room so +insufferable, where did that stifling air come from? Then a draught of +air came from somewhere, and the bedroom was almost instantly filled +with a maze of thin smoke and vapour. There was no longer room for +doubt. With a quick cry Mary sprang from her bed, for the Hall was on +fire! + + + + +CHAPTER XIX. +A GUARDIAN ANGEL + + +There was no longer any question as to the house being on fire. Very +rapidly Mary proceeded to don her clothing; her idea afterwards was to +alarm the house. The girl was not conscious of any feeling of fear, +though she was trembling from head to foot. She had had but a poor +night's rest, and the strain of the previous day had tried her. And +now as she huddled into her clothing, she was conscious of a kind of +relief, the feeling that if the house was burnt down a way had been +found out of her troubles. + +There was an emotion almost of gladness in the thought. But the pride +of race and place came back, and Mary hastened to her task. Dashwood +Hall must be saved at any cost--the historic house must not be allowed +to perish. There were pictures and works of art there that had almost +a national interest. + +Mary flung the door open and strode boldly into the corridor, but she +did not gain a yard before she was driven back by a dense mass of +suffocating smoke. The corridor was filled with it, thick, black, and +overpowering. It was absolutely impossible to force a way through that +blinding cloud. Mary screamed at the top of her voice, but no reply +came. Already her brain began to reel, already her lungs almost ceased +to work. There was only one thing for it--to shut the door and seek +for some other exit. + +Back in the bedroom the air was comparatively pure. The window looked +on to a green court with a high hedge of clipped yew trees beyond. It +was one of the quietest and most shady rooms in the house, and Mary +had chosen it for that very reason. In the winter she occupied another +apartment. But its very quietness frightened the girl now. As she +looked out of the small diamond casement in the great stone mullion, +she realised that it would be impossible for any grown figure to +squeeze through. She might have taken the risk of jumping down on to +the grass, but the bars of the mullion window were too close together +to permit of the attempt. And already the draught from the open window +was drawing the smoke into the room. + +Listening intently, Mary could hear the sound of shouts and the +tramping of feet; now, she caught the echo of horses' hoofs as mounted +messengers galloped down the drive. She shouted aloud, but nobody +appeared to hear her. The thick high hedge of yews seemed to smother +her voice. It was dreadful to be caught in a trap like that, but Mary +resolved to meet her fate bravely. + +Probably the volume of smoke would cause unconsciousness long before +the dreaded fire reached its victim. There would be no pain or +suffering. It seemed to Mary that she had heard people speak of such +things before. Well, she would die alone, and nobody would know how +the end had come. + +Not quite alone! Suddenly Mary remembered that old Patience was in the +dressing-room and looked towards the couch there. + +She rubbed her eyes in astonishment. Patience was no longer there. +Perhaps she had not been able to sleep, probably she had aroused +herself very early and gone about her business. At any rate, she was +not in the dressing-room, and Mary felt glad of it. The horror of the +situation was lessened by the absence of the demented woman. + +Greatly daring, Mary opened the window and screamed for help once +more. She could hear yells and calls, and presently the steady throb +of what she knew to be an engine. But all the time the smoke was +growing thicker and denser in the room. So far Mary could not hear the +crackling of flames, she was not sensible of the fact that the room +was getting any warmer. There was always the hope that the fire might +be subdued before it got a good hold of the building. A great deal of +timber had gone to the building of Dashwood Hall, but the walls were +of the most solid masonry, and it was quite possible for the fire to +burn out a room or two without going any farther. + +Something like an hour passed, an hour that seemed like eternity. The +shouting and the tramping and the thudding were still going on. Then +came a lull for the moment, and it seemed to Mary that somebody was +calling her by name, somebody inside the house. She waited a moment, +thinking perhaps that it was her excited fancy, but once more the call +came, and this time from the corridor. + +Mary thrilled as she heard the voice. At last they had discovered her +absence. She opened the door and called in reply. The smoke was thick +as ever, but there was no sign of flame. Out of the dense whirling +mass a figure emerged and staggered breathlessly into the bedroom. It +was the figure of a man with his handkerchief pressed to his mouth. He +gasped for breath and closed the door behind him. His face was +blackened and grimed with smoke, but Mary had no difficulty in +recognising Ralph Darnley. + +"Again," she said unsteadily, "you are like a guardian angel to me. +This is the third time that you have come to save my life. Had they +forgotten me?" + +"It was all a misunderstanding," Ralph gasped. "In the confusion it +was assumed that everybody was out of the house. Somebody professed to +have seen you going off in the direction of the dower house. My +landlord woke me up, saying that the Hall was on fire. And Lady +Dashwood sent a message to ask if you were all right, and then we +understood. It occurred to me that it would be impossible for you to +escape by way of the window, and whilst the rest were discussing the +best thing to be done, I made a dash for it. The house is full of the +most blinding, suffocating smoke, but I can see no flames anywhere." + +"And so you took your life in your hands like this for me?" Mary +faltered. There was something almost of affection in the eyes which +she turned on the stalwart figure by her side. "I was actually +thinking of you at the very moment that you appeared. But how did you +manage to find the way to this wing so easily?" + +"I suppose by instinct," Ralph said. The question seemed to confuse +him. "How brave and calm you are! But we are wasting time here. Mary, +there is only one way for it. We shall have to fight our way through +that smoke. There is no other chance. It will be quite a blindfold +labour. But perhaps you could pick your way----" + +"In the dark, with my eyes shut," Mary cried. "If I am to die, then at +least I shall die in good company, with a brave, true man by my side. +I shall not perish alone." + +"You will not perish at all," Ralph said between his teeth. "You are +reserved for a better and a sweeter fate than that, my darling. Heaven +is going to rescue us for one another, despite your pride and despite +anything that Mayfield may do. But these heroics are out of place in +the face of the common danger. You have water here and towels?" + +"Plenty of both in the dressing-room," Mary said. "What do you want +them for?" + +But Ralph made no reply. He had a stern task before him, and no time +to waste in words. He took a couple of the largest towels and dipped +them in the water jugs. Then he wrung out the moisture and wrapped the +cold wet fabric round Mary's head. After he had led her to the door, +he did the same for himself. Then he took Mary by the hand, and +whispered that she was to lead the way. + +The task was no easy one, well as Mary knew every inch of the house. +She felt her way to the top of the stairs at length, but her head +seemed like bursting now. Still, the pressure of Ralph's hand gave her +courage. With him by her side, she felt like daring anything. As +presently the air began to grow cooler and sweeter, it seemed to Mary +that she was conscious of the scent of the roses. + +Then the cloth was pulled from her face, and she felt the full delight +of her lungs again. A great crowd had gathered on the lawn, the people +burst into a torrent of cheers. It was all like a dream to Mary. She +saw that Ralph was standing by her side breathless and triumphant. + +"Do not crowd us like that," he said. "Please let Miss Dashwood have +as much air as possible. Neither of us is the least hurt by the fire; +indeed, so far as I can see, this is no fire at all. Has anybody a +conveyance that will take Miss Dashwood as far as the dower house? It +is only a little way, but still----" + +There were scores of people ready to comply with the request. Then the +crowd parted as if by a kind of instinct, and Lady Dashwood appeared. +She was pale and breathless, but not for one moment did she forget +herself or her position. + +"My dear child," she said, "you must come with me at once. Fancy you +being in that house all the time and nobody any the wiser! And they +tell me that a gentleman who is a stranger here volunteered for your +rescue in the bravest possible manner. If he is here I should like to +thank him warmly for----" + +"This is Mr. Ralph Darnley," Mary explained. "He is not a stranger, +for we met in Paris two years ago. Let me introduce Mr. Darnley to +you." + +Ralph bowed and moved towards the hand that Lady Dashwood held out to +him. There were gracious words on his lips. + +"It is impossible to thank you," she said, "but if you will come as +far as the dower house with me, I dare say that I shall be able +to--to----" + +The words seemed to freeze as Lady Dashwood's glance travelled over +Ralph's face. Lady Dashwood took a step forward and would have fallen +if Ralph had not put out an arm and supported her. Then there was an +awkward silence. + + + + +CHAPTER XX. +HALF TOLD + + +The meeting was quite an unexpected one for Ralph. He had his own +powerful reason for not wishing to come in contact with Lady Dashwood, +but the thing was done now, and there was no help for it. Ralph was +the first to recover his self-possession. He saw that the colour was +coming back to Lady Dashwood's face, and that it was very far from her +intentions to make a scene. That would probably come later. + +"There seems to be no conveyance here," Mary said. "And really it is +not worth while to make all this fuss about me. I am quite myself +again and capable of walking as far as the dower house with Lady +Dashwood. Meanwhile, there is other work to do." + +The excitement of the moment had passed, and willing hands were back +once more at the task of putting out the flames. Of the little group +of principal actors in the scene, nobody was more calm or more +collected now than Lady Dashwood. + +"Perhaps we had better walk," she said. "We can take the short cut +through the shrubbery. And I shall be very glad if Mr. Darnley will +accompany us. I presume, sir, that you have not had any breakfast?" + +"I haven't," Ralph said. "Sir George has gone over to one of the farms +for his. If you will be so good as to give me a mouthful of something, +I will come back here and do my very utmost to save the old house. It +would be a great pity to lose it." + +"Indeed I am glad to hear that you are so anxious about the place," +Lady Dashwood said with a significance that puzzled Mary, though it +was by no means lost on Ralph. "The Hall is one of the finest places +of its kind in England." + +Ralph ate his breakfast in silence; Mary was silent too and pleaded a +headache. She had had no sleep, she said, and was in need of rest. She +ate little and drooped like a lily over her plate. When at length she +rose, Ralph rose also. + +"Please don't go yet," said Lady Dashwood in a voice with a touch of +command in it. "I will just see that Mary is made comfortable, and +then I should like to have a word with you, sir. There are so many +willing workers at the Hall that one more or less will make no +difference." + +Ralph bowed. Lady Dashwood would be glad if he would go as far as the +drawing-room. He waited there till his hostess returned, proud and +white, with a stern expression in her eyes. She shut the door behind +her and pointed to a seat. + +"Pray do not stand," she said. "We may be some little time. Did I not +understand my--Mary, to say that you are Mr. Ralph Darnley?" + +"That is quite correct," Ralph said quietly. "Miss Mary made no +mistake." + +"Possibly not. The mistake is on your side. I do not wish to seem in +the least curious or impertinent, but have you no other name?" + +"For the present, none," said Ralph. "Will not your ladyship oblige me +by leaving matters just as they are for the moment? My happiness, the +happiness of everybody, depends upon a complete and absolute +discretion. I did not desire to see you----" + +"No! I gathered that when I saw your face a night or two ago in the +shrubbery. The moon was shining on your features, and it seemed to me +that I was face to face with a ghost. But let me show you something, +Mr. Darnley. It is a miniature of a man whom I have not seen for +nearly forty years, the picture of my son. He left home for reasons +which I need not go into, I never looked on his face again. I have +never before shown the picture to anybody, but I have my very good +reasons for showing it to you. What do you think of it?" + +With trembling hands the old lady passed a miniature in a small gold +frame over to Ralph. He gazed at the picture long and intently, with a +flush on his face and something that was very like moisture in his +eyes. He was silent for so long that Lady Dashwood felt constrained to +speak. + +"Well?" she asked. "I will try to restrain the natural curiosity of my +sex and not ask too many questions. Did you ever see that face +before?" + +"You force me to reply," Ralph said slowly. "You have the advantage +over me, Lady Dashwood." + +"Please do not call me Lady Dashwood. Oh, I am not going to try to +force your confidence; that will come to me in time. Only you have not +yet replied to my question. I asked you if ever you have seen that +face before?" + +"Many a time and oft," Ralph said. "Is it very like me?" + +"Like you! It is a speaking likeness. When I came face to face with +you today, it required all the seventy years of my social training to +keep me from bursting into tears and throwing my arms about your neck. +And nobody recognised you! But I forget that forty years have elapsed +since my boy was in the midst of us. And now tell me, why do you +persist in calling yourself Ralph Darnley?" + +"I have never been known by any other name," Ralph replied. "Perhaps +the time may come some day when I--but we need not discuss that. +Please do not think me churlish or wanting in courtesy to you, Lady +Dashwood." + +Lady Dashwood shook her head mournfully. Something like tears stood in +her eyes. + +"I have no right to ask anything," she said. "I forfeited my right +years ago. But, unless I am greatly mistaken, you could call me by a +sweeter name than Lady Dashwood. My dear boy, I do not wish to pry +into your secrets--you could not act in anything but a straightforward +manner, I am certain. Your face tells me that. Nearly forty years ago +I lost a son like you. How like he was to you I have proved by showing +you that miniature. My son left Dashwood Hall vowing that nobody +should ever see his face again there, and he kept his word. The blame +was mine, and only mine, but I have been terribly punished for my +treachery and deceit." + +"I can hardly believe you guilty of those things, Lady Dashwood." + +"Oh, but I was. It was the cruellest wrong, and he found me out. From +that day to this I have known no happiness. Why do I talk like this to +a stranger? I think you can guess. When I saw your face in the +cloister the other night it seemed as if God had forgiven my sin and +given my son back to me. Is that so?" + +"This is very painful," Ralph stammered. "Will you trust me and be +patient?" + +"I can be patient. I have been patient for forty years. And your face +speaks for you. Go on." + +"There is little more for me to say," Ralph resumed. "For the present +I can tell you nothing. If the son you speak of came back tomorrow not +a soul would recognise him but you." + +"And old Slight," Lady Dashwood said meaningly. "Pray do not forget +him." + +"And old Slight. Quite true. And I am the image of the Ralph Dashwood +who left his home nearly forty years ago. There were reasons, +therefore, why I did not desire to meet you, Lady Dashwood, till the +time was ripe. But circumstances were too strong for me; sooner or +later it had been my hope that--that----" + +"I begin to understand," Lady Dashwood said as Ralph hesitated. "For +the present you desire to be just Ralph Darnley. But the deception +cannot continue for long." + +"For long enough," Ralph smiled. "Let me confide in you to a certain +extent, Lady Dashwood. I am a sentimental man as my father was before +me." + +"I know he was," Lady Dashwood said absently. "If he had not been, my +punishment might have been less--but I am assuming too much. Please go +on." + +"I am a lonely man. My mother died early, and my father and myself +were thrown a great deal together. We spent most of our time in +California, where the population is not great. You can understand how +it was that I became so retrospective. And when I came to hear of the +mystery that my father had kept till the end, I began to have dreams +of my own. I began to see myself the master of a lovely place, like +Dashwood Hall, for instance. . . . You see that I am speaking from my +heart to you now, and I know that you are going to respect my +confidence and sympathise with me." + +"As long as you look at me with those eyes of--yours," Lady Dashwood +murmured. "We are going to be great friends, thank God. But please go +on." + +"Well, I had my dreams of the kind of wife who would make my home a +Paradise for me, and two years ago I met her in Paris. She was proud +and reserved and haughty, but all the same I knew that my instincts +had not played me false. The girl likes me--of that I am certain. It +sounds egotistical, but I believe that she loves me without knowing +it. Had I told her of the fine old house and the good old name, there +would have been no obstacles in the way. But I gave the curb to my +inclinations, and my secret remained untold. . . . For nearly two +years I did not see that girl, not till I came down here less than a +week ago. Can you guess who it is?" + +"Mary," Lady Dashwood cried. "My dear, dear Mary! And she does not +know, she does not dream--indeed, how should she? You want her to----" + +"To care for me, Ralph Darnley. Mary has a terrible curse, her family +pride comes before her duty, and even before her religion. It is the +idol that she has come to worship. Mind, I am by no means blind to the +girl's virtues; I should not love her as I do otherwise. But I want to +break down that family pride, I want to show Mary and prove to her +that it is a mere nothing by the side of love and duty and common +humanity. That is why it is merely Ralph Darnley who speaks to you +today. When Mary owns her love for Ralph Darnley, and holds that love +better than her pride of race, then I can speak. It may be that there +is a hard lesson to be learned first, but I shall not shrink from +that." + +"That is how your--my son used to speak," Lady Dashwood murmured. "So +gentle and firm, and yet so kind and considerate! You are going to +make Mary happy despite herself." + +"That is my intention," Ralph went on. "Look how she is acting now. +Sir George has come within the grip of a scoundrel. I am alluding to +Horace Mayfield. He has schemed out all this trouble and disaster so +as to get Mary in his power. The girl's senseless pride has been +Mayfield's strongest weapon. You know all about those sheriffs men, of +course. Rather than have a whisper of the trouble spoken, Mary is +ready to marry Horace Mayfield and condemn herself to lifelong misery +and humiliation. It seems almost incredible that a girl should be so +frozen into the ice of her family pride. But Mary is not going to +marry Horace Mayfield, she is destined for me. The lever to remove the +stone from the path is mine, and I shall know how to use it when the +time comes. Already I have so brought it about that Sir George can be +free of Mayfield in the course of a few days, but there is still Mary +to deal with. I do not quite see my way clearly with her, but fate may +play into my hands and find me an instrument which----" + +Ralph paused hurriedly, for another man came noisily into the room. He +was rather like Ralph as regards figure and feature and trick of +expression, but his face was effeminate, and his very black eyes a +little shifty and sinister. In dress and manner he had the air of a +gentleman, but at the same time there was a suggestion of loudness and +hardness about him that belied the description. He did not see Ralph, +for he advanced noisily into the room. + +"I've been looking for you everywhere," he said. "Why are you hiding +here, old lady?" + + + + +CHAPTER XXI. +VINCENT DASHWOOD + + +Ralph's face grew stern as he stared at the intruder. The newcomer +returned the stare with insolent audacity. The pleased and softened +expression had left Lady Dashwood's features, she looked white and +anxious, and Ralph could see that her hands were trembling. It was +quite evident that she was greatly afraid of the man with the cold +black eyes. + +"Beg pardon," the newcomer muttered. "Didn't know you were engaged. +Friend of yours?" + +"Mr. Ralph Darnley," Lady Dashwood said. "A very old friend of the +family, or, at any rate his father was. Let me introduce you to Mr. +Vincent Dashwood." + +"I have heard of you," said Ralph, with a queer vibration in his +voice. "I understand that one time your father had some idea of +claiming the succession to the property. I have heard my father speak +of your branch of the family." + +Dashwood muttered something that Ralph could not quite follow. + +"We could tell a different story, the old lady and self," he went on +suggestively. "I shall have a pleasant surprise for Sir George some of +these days. I'm only waiting for some papers from the other side and I +shall move. My father married a Californian lady, you see, and they +are pretty careless there in their keeping of records. Still, it is +only a matter of time." + +"That is very strange," Ralph said grimly. "My father also married a +Californian lady. Oh, you need not look so uncomfortable; I am not +likely to interfere with your claim. Indeed, I may be in a position to +assist you a little later." + +Just for the moment there was a queer grey tint on Vincent Dashwood's +face. He seemed to be horribly frightened about something. But the +expression passed, and his old saturnine look returned. Ralph was +smiling, too, as if something amused him. Lady Dashwood glanced from +one to the other furtively, as if she feared some outbreak of +violence. There was no means of reading Ralph's thoughts from the +expression of his face, or Dashwood would not have been standing there +so utterly at his ease. For he was a scoundrel of the vilest type, the +class who do not hesitate to blackmail women. + +"Well, I'll just go and look round till you have finished with the +gentleman," Dashwood said airily. "Then mind that you are ready for +our little business, old lady. I've got to be in London this evening, +and no mistake about it. By the way, the Hall is in the hands of the +firemen and police, but I'm told that no great damage has been done." + +The speaker swaggered from the room with his hands in his pockets, +whistling as he went. Ralph's expression grew _stern and hard_. + +"So this is one of the crosses that you have to bear," he said. "At +the risk of being curious, I must ask you a question. Is this the man +for whose sake you have been raising money on the family jewels? How +long has it been going on?" + +Lady Dashwood clasped her hands and the tears came into her eyes. + +"Nearly two years," she whispered. "Thank God, you have come to me, +for my strength would not have borne the burden much longer. Nobody +knows anything; nobody suspects but Slight. And he pretended to be my +grandson. We were both utterly deceived. He knows everything, he told +me all about the original quarrel, he had letters which I had written +from time to time to your--to my son. And he is an infamous scoundrel. +He desired me to keep his presence and his claim a secret, and for the +credit of the family I did so. The few who know him think he comes +from the Yorkshire side of the house. He traded on my fears; he knew +what I thought of him. And when he had drained me of thousands, and in +sheer despair I pressed him to push on his claim, he always pleaded +that he could not get certain papers--his mother's marriage +certificate, I think it was. Mind you, I believed in him implicitly; +with all the sacred private information he had, I could do nothing +else. And Slight also was equally deceived. He has had nearly +everything of mine that he could lay his hands on. You see that I am +powerless to protest; if I had forced him to speak, there would only +have been a scandal. He has been getting bolder lately or he would not +have spoken so freely to you just now. And directly I saw your face +today I knew at once that it had all been a hideous mistake. You will +free me from that man, Ralph?" + +"Not quite yet," Ralph replied. "You must play your part a little +longer. If, as you say, you have nothing more to bestow, you need not +be afraid of him. That man has given me a new idea for bringing about +the object that I have most closely at heart. I am going to make use +of him, if necessary. If it is not necessary, then I shall make very +short work of Mr. Vincent Dashwood. But before that you must tell me +everything. Mind, I say everything as regards my--your son's marriage +with Maria Edgerton. I believe that marriage was the cause of all the +mischief." + +"Indeed it was," Lady Dashwood said. Her voice was filled with the +deepest sadness. "What will you think of me when you hear of the part +I played in that unhappy affair? But I cannot tell you now, I am unfit +to go into the matter at present. The shock of meeting you has been +almost more than I can bear. Come and dine with me here on Saturday +night, and I will tell you everything. My dear Ralph--if I may call +you so in private--is it possible that your coming is the augury of a +happier time for me? Happiness I won't ask for, but I should like to +go down to the grave in peace." + +"It shall be no fault of mine if you do not," Ralph replied. "I have +planned out my scheme and I am going through with it to the end. There +may be troubles and trials to come, but everything is going to end +happily for us all. Goodbye." + +Ralph held out his hand, but Lady Dashwood drew him down to her chair. + +"Give me a kiss, my bonny boy," she whispered. "It may be as well for +us to keep up the formality and play the drama till the time comes, +but it is no harm to kiss an old woman and let her look into the eyes +that she has seen in her dreams for forty weary years. God bless you, +Ralph, and prosper your schemes, for nothing you do will be wrong." + +Ralph went on his way presently through the shrubbery in the direction +of the Hall. A great crowd of people still lingered there, but the +police had kept almost intact the trim lawn and the beds of brilliant +flowers. Inside the house were a posse of police and a few firemen +from Longtown. In the stable yard the scarlet fire engine glittered in +the sun. So far as it was possible to see, no great harm had been +done. + +Nobody was allowed in the house except the firemen and police, an +inspector informed Ralph, who had asked for Sir George. None of the +structure had been much damaged, none of the furniture had suffered +anything except from smoke and water. There was just a suspicion that +one of the great beams under the hall floor was still smouldering, and +the firemen were going to stay until they were absolutely sure on the +point. + +"Most extraordinary thing, Darnley," Sir George said. "There seemed to +be nothing but smoke. Slight will tell you that there was nothing but +smoke. At the present moment an expert in this kind of things is +making an examination with a view to discovering the cause of the +outbreak. Nuisance to have these people here, but it can't be helped." + +"Better these, Sir George, than Mr. Mayfield's friends," Slight +croaked. "At any rate, we have got rid of them for the present. If +somebody set the house afire on purpose, they could not have done us a +better turn, seems to me." + +Slight spoke loudly as a man in a kind of uniform came up. He touched +his cap to Sir George, and looked fixedly at the old butler. Evidently +he had overheard what was said. + +"Many things more unlikely than that," he said. "Sir George, I think +that I have discovered the origin of the mischief, if you will kindly +come this way." + +"Of course I was joking," Slight said indignantly. "You don't suppose +that I mean to imply that the fire was anything but an accident, Mr. +Sayers?" + +"All the same it was no accident," the official said grimly. "If you +will come this way, I will prove to you that the fire was a wicked and +deliberate act on the part of somebody." + + + + +CHAPTER XXII. +WHO DID IT? + + +There was a smile on Slight's face, as if he rather enjoyed the +situation. After all was said and done, the culprit had been +successful in bringing about the thing the old butler most desired. +Fortunately no harm had been done to the house; there was nothing the +matter beyond the damage caused by smoke and water, nothing that the +work of a day or two could not put right. At the same time this +attempt to destroy the house had been the means of removing from it +the trio whose presence had been so great a humiliation. The police +had cleared everybody out of the house, indeed the Hall was likely to +remain empty now till they had investigated the causes of the fire. + +"It might have been worse, sir," Slight whispered to Ralph. "It's a +good way of getting rid of those fellows till Sir George is ready to +pack them off altogether. Whoever did this was a sort of friend of +ours." + +Ralph started. Slight's suggestion had given him a sudden idea. + +"That may be," he said, "but you will admit that the experiment is a +risky one. The place might have been utterly destroyed. Still, it is +yet to be proved that this is the work of an incendiary. I can hardly +believe that it is." + +The inspector led the way to the Hall. So far as the eye of a novice +could judge, it was here that the fire had burst out. The floor was +black and scarred and a few beams were still hot from the effects of +the flames. The floor was littered with some crisp ashes. + +"Now I want to call your attention to this, Sir George," the inspector +said. "Nothing has been destroyed here, nothing but the floor and a +portion of the ceiling. There must have been a very fierce blaze here, +and yet there is nothing for the flames to feed on. Then where did all +those crisp short ashes come from? See what a pile there is of them! +What was it that burnt here so fiercely?" + +"It certainly is a strange thing," Sir George murmured. + +"Very strange, sir.' There was nothing left on the hall floor last +night, I suppose? No packing cases or anything of that kind, Sir +George?" + +"There was not," Slight exclaimed. "I can answer for that, nothing +whatever." + +"Which renders my suspicions all the more certain," the official went +on. "The short crisp ashes represented straw, a large bundle of straw +dumped down on the floor and set fire to by some person or other. +Please look at this." + +The speaker stooped down and gathered up a handful of the crisp ashes, +smoothing them out on the palm of his hand. At intervals there were +yellow shining specks in the grains. + +"Will you kindly look closely?" he said. "Amongst the charred mass you +can plainly see specks of straw that have escaped the fire. It seems +to me an amazing thing that anybody could carry straw into the house +like this without being found out. But there it is, and there is an +end of it. You are quite sure as to the straw, Sir George?" + +"Quite," Dashwood muttered. "Most amazing. We did not go to bed till +very late, which makes it all the more remarkable. It must have been +practically daylight before the miscreant could have begun to work." + +"It certainly is a novelty," the Inspector replied, "but I want to +convince you fully that I am right in my conclusion. You will see that +parts of the ashes, very minute parts, are plastered together as if +they were wet. Also you will see that the floor has been burnt in a +kind of channel nearly as far as the door. It is only a narrow +channel, but at the same time it is perfectly well defined. Now, what +caused the floor to burn in that erratic manner? I am going to tell +you. Let us follow that track up as far as the door. There is a large +stone with little cracks at the side into which a liquid of some kind +has fallen or run rather." + +The speaker bent down and rolled a scrap of paper into the moisture +which lay shining in the crack of the stone. Then he handed the paper +to Sir George. + +"Will you kindly smell that, sir," he asked, "and tell me what you +make of it?" + +"No trouble at all about that," Dashwood exclaimed; "the stuff is +paraffin beyond a doubt." + +"Precisely. The straw was dumped on the floor and then saturated with +paraffin. If the straw was slightly damp, that would account for the +dense quantity of smoke. The paraffin ran into little ripples over the +floor, which accounts for the strange track of the flames. But we can +ascertain that to a certainty." + +A question or two being asked, it was discovered that a large can of +petroleum was missing from one of the toolsheds. A little later the +empty tin was discovered in one of the flower-beds. The discussion was +at its height when Mary appeared. She looked very pale and shaky, +otherwise she maintained her self-possession. But as she listened to +the strange story it seemed to Ralph Darnley that she was disturbed +about something. The pallor of her face became more marked, her eyes +filled with something like fear. Did the girl know anything about it, +Ralph asked himself? If not, why did she appear to be so strangely +moved by the plain recital? The thought was ignoble and unworthy, but +Ralph could not free himself from it altogether. He drew Mary a little +apart from the rest; he could see that she was trembling with some +strong emotion. + +"The old house has had a very narrow escape," he began. "All Horace +Mayfield's carefully prepared plans were very nearly in vain. If the +house had been destroyed----" + +"I--I did not look at it in that light," Mary stammered. "As you say, +nothing could have mattered had the house perished. Where are those +men now?" + +"I don't know. It does not in the least matter. As things stand at +present, the police will not permit anybody to be in the house except +one or two like ourselves. Until their investigations are complete and +they have gathered all their evidence, nobody will be permitted to +sleep in the house. The men you speak of will be treated just like +anybody else. It seems as if Fate were fighting on your side, Mary. +You have no occasion to fear Horace Mayfield now." + +Mary smiled faintly. It was evident that she was deeply troubled about +something. + +"I think I understand you," she said presently. "The loss of the house +would have been a dreadful grief to me. But, still, these natural +misfortunes happen to all of us, and I daresay I could have suffered +the loss as well as most people. And the blow would have possessed +many compensations. To be free from Horace Mayfield, ah!" + +Mary finished her speech with a deep, long-drawn sigh. But the +whiteness did not leave her face, the look of fear still lurked in her +blue eyes. Ralph took a step forward and bent down so that he could +whisper his words into Mary's ear. + +"Your pride would have carried you through that," he said. "At the +same time, your position had driven you almost to despair. You know +more than you care to say, Mary, you know more than the rest of us how +the fire came about. Can you look me in the face and deny it? Are you +going to tell me the truth?" + +Mary's face flamed with anger. She stepped back, and her passionate +eyes flashed in Ralph's direction. He could see the crimson mounting +to her temples. + +"Perhaps you would like to accuse me of the crime?" she asked +breathlessly. "Perhaps you would like to suggest that I did it to save +a scandal? That I risked my own life, and the lives of other people, +because I was afraid of a paltry disgrace? Is there anything else that +you would like to imply, Mr. Darnley?" + +"You are talking nonsense," Ralph said coldly, "and you know it. I am +not insinuating anything of the kind. But you know quite well who the +culprit is." + +Suddenly Mary's manner changed. She grew quiet and docile. Ralph could +see that her lips were trembling, and that she found it hard to keep +back the tears. + +"Forgive me," she whispered. "Think how hard I am tried, how hard it +all is for me. If I were a man I should probably take a more rational +view of the case. Remember how my whole heart and soul are wrapped up +in this house. I could fight to save it from contamination as a mother +would try to shield an erring son. If I lost it I should die!" + +"You would not," Ralph said. "If, by any trick of fortune, Dashwood +Hall passed out of your possession, it would be the very best thing +that ever happened to you. If you had to go out into the world to get +your own living it would be the making of your character. It would +bring out all the natural nobility of your nature--you would look back +to the past with remorse. Of that I am certain." + +"Indeed," Mary said coldly. "Perhaps you would like to bring that +misfortune about?" + +"I should," Ralph retorted. "If I could be cruel to be kind like that, +I should not hesitate for a moment. But we are getting a long way from +the point. I said that if you had no hand in this business, you know +who did it." + +"I have my suspicions. But, until I can verify them, it would be wrong +to speak. Even if I knew for certain, I should hesitate to tell +anybody what I had discovered. One thing I can promise you--the +attempt will not be made again. . . . What are those people so excited +about? Have they made some fresh discovery? Let us go and see." + +Sir George and the Inspector were closely examining some shining +object that the latter held in the palm of his hand. There was a grim +look on Slight's face. + +"What is it?" Ralph asked. "What is the latest sensational development +of the mystery?" + +"This, sir," the Inspector exclaimed. "We have found this matchbox +under the burnt straw." + + + + +CHAPTER XXIII. +THE SILVER CLUE + + +The silver matchbox was a peculiar one and quite out of the common run +of such things. It had a spring lid deeply engraved with a hunting +scene, in the centre of the medallion a pair of initials were +ingeniously woven together in small stones. The Inspector asked Sir +George if he could identify it as part of the family property. + +"Never saw it before," Dashwood said promptly. "I am certain that the +thing does not belong to anybody in my house. What do you make the +initials to be?" + +"'V.D.' or 'D.V.'", sir, the Inspector said. "That is perfectly plain. +Now does anybody know a person who bears those initials? I should say +that the matches are of foreign make, for they are flat, wooden ones, +such as one rarely sees in this country. The first thing we have to do +is to find out who is this 'V.D.' or 'D.V.' is. He seems to have +dropped his matchbox into the fire. Probably, the blaze startled him +by its suddenness. But I don't suppose we shall find much difficulty +in proving who the owner is." + +Sir George shook his head: evidently the puzzle was utterly beyond +him. Slight crossed over to one of the windows as if the whole subject +had ceased to interest him. He made a sign to Ralph and the latter +joined the old servant. He could see that Slight was suppressing a +certain excitement. + +"What is the matter?" he asked. "Have you solved the problem?" + +"No, Mr. Ralph, I've only made it worse," Slight whispered. "I know +quite well who that box belongs to, for I've seen it in his possession +a score of times, to say nothing of the initials. Did you not meet a +Mr. Vincent Dashwood at the dower house today?" + +Ralph started in his turn. Vincent Dashwood's initials were on that +box surely enough. And, that being the case, what did Mary know of the +man? Was she shielding the man who gave out more or less directly that +he was the proper owner of Dashwood Hall? Mary was not the girl to +show any clemency to an impostor, and if, on the other hand, she did +not regard him as an impostor she would be the last person to pretend +to a position that she had no right to occupy. But Slight would know. + +"I did meet that man you name, but I can't understand how you came to +know it so soon," Ralph said. "A tiger, if I ever saw one, Slight. And +he let me know pretty clearly that he had more than a passing claim to +_a deal_ that other people are enjoying. Is Mr. Vincent Dashwood +pretty well known to people here, Slight?" + +"Not to anybody but her ladyship and myself," Slight replied. "Mind +you, I can't make out whether he's an impostor or not; at least, I was +very uncertain in my mind until you came along, sir. He claims to be +the son of the late Ralph Dashwood and he has proofs that would +satisfy any court in England; and anyone except me. As yet he can't +produce the certificate of marriage of his mother and father. But he +has any number of private papers,--letters from her ladyship to her +son and all the rest of it, to say nothing of being familiar with the +place. He didn't want to make a fuss about his claim; he wanted to +have it quite plain first. He's been here for a long time." + +"Blackmailing Lady Dashwood, I suppose? The fellow is too cowardly to +claim the property out and out. In that case he would either have to +substantiate his claim or run the risk of a long term of imprisonment +if he failed. And, meanwhile, Lady Dashwood displays a weakness that +is almost criminal. She half doubts this rascal, and yet at the same +time she allows him to take the proceeds of the disposal of the family +jewels. Half of the weakness is dictated by the dread of Miss Mary +finding out the truth. If there are other reasons----" + +"Ay, there are other reasons, Mr. Ralph," Slight said in a broken +voice. "If you only knew everything, you would pity her ladyship. She +has kept this secret as well as she has kept the rest. Miss Mary knows +nothing; she was meant to know nothing." + +"And now she will know everything, everybody will know everything. The +story of the matchbox will have to be told, and the owner will have to +explain how it came here and who he is. You should have known better, +Slight, than try to keep a secret like this. Sooner or later the +explosion was bound to come. What are you going to do about it now?" + +"I'm not going to do anything, sir," Slight said bluntly. "It is not +for me in my position to push myself forward. Let the police hunt the +matter up for themselves. If Mr. Vincent Dashwood likes to lie low it +makes no difference to us." + +Ralph smiled at the suggestion. It was so like the policy of the house +to leave things to chance like this. In a vague way, Ralph began to +see that Fate was playing into his hands. He would let the rod fall. +He would be cruel to be kind. As to the rest, it was in Mary's hands; +all would depend upon how she behaved for the next day or two. It all +stood out clearly in Ralph's mind now like the thread of a connected +story. + +"I'll go as far as the dower house," he said thoughtfully. "I should +like to say a few words to Mr. Vincent Dashwood. Am I likely to find +him there?" + +"You are that, Mr. Ralph," Slight snapped. "When he isn't spending the +money that does not belong to him, he is generally to be found not far +from her ladyship. And this game has been going on for the last two +years. I'm an old man, and hope I know my position in the place to +which God has called me, but I've come very near to shooting that man +more than once. Calls himself a Dashwood, and he has all the papers to +prove himself a Dashwood, and yet he is no more a chip off the old +block than I am. And yet you can't trip him up in anything, only in +one way." + +"And what is that?" Ralph smiled. + +"Well, he wasn't astonished to see you, sir. He pretends to be the son +of the late Ralph Dashwood, and, as such must have a pretty good idea +of his father's physical appearance. Now you are the very image of +what Mr. Ralph used to be. And this Vincent does not comment upon your +likeness to my late young master. Why don't you step in, sir, why +don't you step in and drive the blackguard away?" + +"All in good time," Ralph replied. "You may rest assured that I shall +speak out to some purpose when I am ready. Now I'll go as far as the +dower house. I take it that the family will sleep there tonight." + +Ralph crossed the lawn thoughtfully in the direction of the dower +house. He understood the footman to say that her ladyship was +somewhere in the garden. + +Lady Dashwood was found at last, seated under a spacious cedar tree, +which was one of the ornaments of the garden. She was not alone, for +Vincent Dashwood was by her side. The man seemed to be hot and angry +about something, and it was evident that Lady Dashwood had been +weeping. A quick anger possessed Ralph, and it was all he could do to +refrain from laying hands on this impostor, who was causing such +trouble and misery here. A few words and the bubble would be pricked. +Still, there was always the great plan before Ralph's eyes, the plan +of his life with which nothing must interfere. He would have withdrawn +now, only Lady Dashwood caught sight of him and beckoned him to her +side. Vincent Dashwood scowled openly at the intruder. + +"I was just coming over to see you," Ralph said. "You will be pleased +to hear that the fire has done no particular damage, nothing that a +little soap and water and some paint can't put right. But for the +present the police and the fire people prefer that the house should +not be used. As to the servants----" + +"They can all come here," Lady Dashwood said. "I will go over and see +Sir George without delay. But, seeing that the house is all right, why +do the authorities interfere in this unreasonable way?" + +"They think that they have made an important discovery," Ralph +explained. "They are under the impression that the fire is not an +accident, and, really, I have been converted to the same opinion. It +seems almost incredible, but somebody brought a lot of straw into the +house and set it on fire, after saturating the mass with paraffin. +There is no doubt about the straw, for fragments of it can be seen in +the ashes, and distinct traces of paraffin can be found. Had not the +floor and the walls been as hard as iron, a great tragedy might have +taken place. But, to make matters certain, the police found a silver +matchbox with a monogram in the ashes." + +"The blackguards!" Vincent Dashwood cried. "I'm glad of that. Let us +hope that the box will lead to the discovery of the culprit." + +"That is not quite likely," Ralph said drily. "I came over here on +purpose to get at the bottom of that matchbox business. It is rather a +novelty in the way of a box, for I have seen it--even the matches are +original. The monogram on it is 'V. D.,' which happens to be your +initials, Mr. Dashwood. To go further, old Slight says the box is +yours. Can you account for this strange happening?" + +Dashwood started and changed colour. He plunged his hands into his +pockets apparently in search of something he was unable to find. + +"I've lost it," he cried. "There is no denying the fact, Mr. Darnley, +that I had just the kind of box you describe. It is possible that I +dropped it, and the culprit picked it up. I should hardly be +likely--to----" + +The speaker paused, and Ralph filled in the rest of the speech for +him. + +"I perfectly understand," he said drily. "It is hardly likely that Mr. +Vincent Dashwood would go out of his way to destroy a property which +sooner or later he looks forward to enjoying as his own. I think that +is what you mean to convey?" + + + + +CHAPTER XXIV. +A FRESH CALAMITY + + +Dashwood nodded sulkily. He had a vague idea that Ralph was making fun +of him in some way. Still, he was understood to say that such was his +precise meaning. Lady Dashwood rose and walked off in the direction of +the house; she had to see to the comfort of her expected visitors. + +"I hope you will dine with us tonight, Mr. Darnley," she said. "Just +Sir George and Mary, with Vincent here--nothing more than a quiet +family party." + +"Too quiet and too family for me," Dashwood muttered. "You can count +me out. Besides, I have the most important business in London tonight." + +Lady Dashwood looked relieved. There was no mistaking the expression +of her face as she turned away. Dashwood noticed it, and his face +flushed dully. He made a motion to follow, but Ralph laid a strong +hand upon his arm. + +"One moment, if you please," he said, "I should like to have a few +words with you on the subject of that matchbox. The police are pretty +certain to ask you a great many questions concerning it, as you can +see for yourself?" + +"Let 'em ask," growled Dashwood, "it's nothing to do with me. I +dropped that box, and the chap who set fire to the house picked it +up." + +"But suppose that chap, as you call him, happened to see you hanging +about the house at a very early hour in the morning, a groom or +somebody of that kind, who was prepared to swear to your identity? +What then, my dear sir?" + +Ralph was only drawing a bow at a venture; he was really working out a +little theory of his own, but the arrow went home to the feather. +Dashwood's face turned to a dull grey; he seemed to be utterly +unnerved for the moment. + +"Look here," he blustered presently, "what do you think you are likely +to gain by asking me all these prying questions? Suppose I _was_ +hanging about the place last night. What then? Isn't it natural? Can't +you understand the interest I take in my own property? You don't +suppose that I should be likely to burn down a house of my own that +contained some fifty thousand pounds worth of artistic treasures?" + +"Your logic is too strong for me," Ralph smilingly admitted. "As the +claimant to the property and the title you are hardly likely to +destroy the house. But there is one thing that puzzles me--if things +are as you say, why do you not press your claim?" + +"Because I am short of a certain document. It is rather an important +document for it happens to be my mother's marriage certificate. But I +am informed that the proper will comes into my possession soon, and +then I can move. Till that time I have decided to let sleeping dogs +lie." + +"Meaning that Sir George is to remain in blissful ignorance, I +presume?" + +"That's about it. Let him make the best of his reign. And that +stuck-up daughter of his! She'll get her face to the grindstone before +she is much older. Besides, there is another matter. Lady Dashwood has +to be considered." + +With difficulty Ralph disguised his contempt. A fine consideration the +speaker had for Lady Dashwood! He was trading cunningly on her +weakness and her desire to avoid scandal. It was his cue to pretend +that he did not care to take any steps during the lifetime of the +unhappy old lady. He had stripped her pretty well of all she had, +without any risk to himself. So long as the golden stream flowed he +need never fear. + +Directly he came to make his claim he would be asked searching +questions and would have to satisfy keen legal minds of the honesty of +his proofs. Meanwhile, he preferred to blackmail an innocent old lady +who was too ill and broken down to protest. Ralph read the fellow like +an open book, but he was going to make use of him later, if needs be. +Therefore it was that he disguised his feelings now. + +"That sounds very creditable," he said. "It is very good of you to +consider Lady Dashwood's feelings in this way. I hope she is +correspondingly grateful." + +"She isn't anything of the kind," Dashwood protested. "She fairly +hates me. Every bit of affection that she has is centred on Sir George +Dashwood's girl. Everything must be made smooth for Mary. Maybe her +pride will have a bit of a dash before long. I don't know why I am +telling you all these things, except that you seem a good sort. For +all I know to the contrary, you may be a police spy inquiring into my +past. All the same, I don't think the old lady would stoop to that +kind of thing." + +"You are quite right," Ralph said drily. "I'm sure she couldn't. I +must be going now. I shall not have the pleasure of seeing you at +dinner tonight?" + +Dashwood winked significantly. There were better attractions +elsewhere. The air seemed to be all the sweeter and purer after he had +gone. Very slowly and thoughtfully Ralph made his way across the +fields in the direction of his temporary abode. Fate seemed determined +to place all the threads in his hands; everything was arranging itself +just as he could have wished. His plan of action became quite clear +and plain. There were certain circumstances to be taken into +consideration, more particularly the way that Mary would act in the +future. And Vincent Dashwood would be an important pawn in the game. +By the time that it became necessary to dress for dinner Ralph had +worked it all out. + +He walked across the fields in the direction of the dower house. It +was a lovely night, clear and bright, with no breath of air stirring. +Ralph could see the red gables of the Hall beyond the noble elms and +beeches, and a pleasant picture rose before his eyes. He could see +himself as master of the place with Mary by his side--not the Mary of +the proud, cold face and haughty eye, but another Mary, soft and +beautiful, as she emerged chastened and purified from the furnace of +the family pride. There would be trouble and humiliation first, but it +should all come about, or Ralph would know the reason why. + +He was still debating the matter as he reached the dower house and a +well-trained footman took him as far as the drawing-room. The blinds +were not down yet, so that the room was filled with the saffron glory +of the sunset. It was all so refined and homelike, so different to +anything that Ralph had ever seen before. It was the thing that Ralph +had dreamt of, the home life that had occupied much of his waking +dreams. It lay before him now, but there was much to be done first. + +Lady Dashwood came stately and smiling into the room. The look in her +eyes was warm and affectionate as Ralph took her hand. Mary was not +down yet, she explained, but the girl was dressing for dinner, and she +was much better for a long sleep. Then Mary came into the room, serene +and calm, with a flush on her beautiful face as she caught sight of +Ralph. + +"You have heard all the good news?" she asked. "The Hall has not been +in the least damaged by the fire. My father ran in to tell me a little +time ago, and he has gone back, preferring to dress at home. I +understand that we shall be back home on Saturday." + +"So I am told," Ralph replied. "It has been a great inconvenience, of +course, but it most opportunely rid you of very undesirable visitors. +By the time that Saturday comes you will be in a position to defy +them." + +"Indeed, I hope so," Mary said, with the deep flush still on her face. +"My father intends to bring those documents so marvellously recovered +here with him tonight, and tomorrow he will take them to London. Mr. +Mayfield is a clever man, but circumstances have been too strong for +him this time. Mr. Darnley, you are our good fairy; without you I have +not the least idea what we should have done." + +"Don't be so sure of that," Ralph smiled. "The fairy of my time +always seemed to want something in return for past favours, and you +may find that I am keeping very closely to precedent. But is not Sir +George very late?" + +A big clock over the carved oak mantel chimed the hour of eight. Lady +Dashwood shook her head, and explained that one must make allowances +just now. There would be no great harm done if the dinner waited for +five minutes. It was all the same to Ralph, who asked nothing better +than to sit in that perfect atmosphere and contemplate the beauty of +the girl before him. He had to wait some time for the prize, but he +knew that it would fall into his fingers at last. There was one +shortcut to victory, but he wasn't going to take that way. He watched +the sunshine playing on Mary's face, he seemed to see clean through +the mask of pride to the pure white soul below. + +"I am going to ask you a question," the girl said. "You have never +told me what was your business here, except that you had lost your +money and that you had come into these parts to pick up something from +the wreck. Is everything gone, Mr. Darnley?" + +"Everything," Ralph smiled, "save honour. My father trusted Horace +Mayfield, and the result is that when I leave here I shall have to get +my living. I don't quite know what I am going to do, but I am strong +and capable and steady. I may say----" + +"Here is Sir George at last," Lady Dashwood exclaimed. "What a hurry +he seems to be in. Mary, my dear, will you please to ring the bell and +tell Seddon we are ready for dinner. . . . Why----" + +Sir George had come hurriedly into the room. The white tie had come +unfastened and hung in two streamers down his shirt front, but he did +not seem to notice it. His face was as white as his tie; his forehead +was damp with moisture. + +"I've lost them," he cried; "stolen out of my desk! All those precious +papers! And now I am more in the power of that scoundrel Mayfield than +ever! I--I----" + +He dropped into a chair and burst into a flood of maudlin, senile +tears. + + + + +CHAPTER XXV. +PRIDE OR PREJUDICE + + +Ralph's first feeling was one of contempt. It was almost incredible +that a man of Sir George's position could behave in so childish and +weak a fashion. Here was the diplomatist who had been so popular in +Paris, so bland and dignified, assuming the _rôle_ of a silly girl who +had lost some foolish ornament. For the time being he had cast his +manhood entirely behind him. He sat on the couch with the tears +streaming down his cheeks, great sobs burst from his chest. + +"Gone!" he wailed. "Absolutely vanished. I locked them up in a desk +last night, or the night before, and now they have disappeared. Don't +tell me they have not been stolen, because I know better. Besides, +nothing else is disturbed. And those papers were there to prove my +absolute claim to Dashwood Hall. With those documents in my possession +I could have raised as much money as I needed. I could have returned +here in a day or two and rid myself of that scoundrel, Mayfield, for +ever. He meant to cover me with ignominy and disgrace, but the fire +prevented that. And now he has managed to get those papers stolen." + +"That is impossible," Ralph cried. "He did not know of their +existence." + +"Why not! How can you prove that he didn't know? He is one of the +cleverest scoundrels in the world. He gets to know everything, and he +was actually under my roof on the very night that the papers were so +marvellously recovered. It is just possible that he was spying about +all the time." + +"It does not seem at all probable," Lady Dashwood said in a faint +whisper. + +"Oh, yes, it does," Sir George replied. "I'm quite ready to argue it +out either way. We will admit that Mayfield didn't know till later, +till the next morning, in fact, when I told him what had happened, and +practically ordered him out of the house. He saw at once then that he +no longer held me in his grip; he wanted nobody to tell him that those +precious papers were close at hand. He made up his mind to obtain +possession of them without delay. Therefore, he invented the idea of +the fire--a fire that would cause a deal of smoke and confusion and +yet not do much harm. Under cover of the fire he stole the papers." + +Ralph was listening with a kind of painful toleration of the snuffling +speaker. A startling idea came into his mind now. He glanced at Lady +Dashwood, who seemed to read his thoughts. In the light of their +especial knowledge, facts pointed to quite another individual as the +culprit. If the fire had been the work of an incendiary, then that +criminal was undoubtedly Vincent Dashwood, whose matchbox had been +found in the ashes. Vincent Dashwood had palpably been uneasy when the +missing matchbox had been mentioned, he was still more uneasy at +Ralph's suggestion that he had been hanging about Dashwood Hall within +an hour or so of the outbreak. Was there some deep and powerful reason +why Vincent Dashwood desired to see the old house burnt to the ground? +Was it to bury some secret in the ashes? + +The more Ralph pondered over this, the deeper the mystery became. He +could see quite clearly how Mayfield's scheme would benefit by +possession of those papers. What he could not fathom was what Vincent +Dashwood had to gain by a disastrous fire. He would go into this +without taking anybody into his confidence, Ralph thought. There was +yet another danger that struck much closer at the root of his +happiness--the position in which Mary stood in the face of this +catastrophe. + +He glanced across at the girl, who stood on the far side of the +drawing-room with the light of the shaded lamps on her face. He could +see that her features were pale and drawn, that there was a hunted, +haunted look in her eyes. It was quite evident that she fully +appreciated the danger of the situation. And yet the feeling uppermost +in her mind was the feeling of bitterness and sorrow for the sorry +part her father was playing. + +"I should like to understand the position fully," she said. "What +difference does the loss of those papers imply? Cannot you do without +them, father?" + +"I am helpless, my dear," Sir George groaned. "I am the head of the +family, and the man who enjoys the revenue of the estates, and I shall +probably continue to do so until I die. But for the next six months or +so I could not raise a penny on the property, not till the time +mentioned in the late owner's will expires, when I become legally +possessed of everything, even though a direct heir of Ralph Dashwood +appears. Then I can borrow as much money as I please. Now, I am +absolutely at the mercy of Horace Mayfield." + +The pallor on Mary's face deepened; hope faded from her heart. She was +in the toils again and made no attempt to disguise the fact. It was +quite immaterial to her who had those papers, so long as they were +gone. + +"Let me make the position quite clear," she went on, in a hard, level +voice. "Let us revert to the condition of affairs existing before +those papers were found; let us assume that they never existed at all. +You owe a very large sum of money, father, a sum that it is impossible +for you to pay. If you fail to raise the amount, which we may take for +granted, something like disgrace and dishonour falls on you. That is +not your fault, I know, but other people will not think so, and the +head of the house of Dashwood will stand before his fellow men stamped +as little better than a felon. Is that so?" + +"That is the way in which the world will regard it," Sir George +groaned. + +"Quite so, father. You can't find the money, and nobody will find it +for you. As I know already, it is useless to appeal to Lady Dashwood." + +"Quite, my dear," Lady Dashwood murmured. "I would give anything to +avert the disgrace, but I have nothing. I am a wicked old woman, and +my sins are finding me out. I have parted with everything, even to my +jewels, to keep a certain secret, and I see now that the sacrifice is +going to be all in vain." + +Mary turned and laid a soothing hand on the speaker's arm. There was +something sweet, almost affectionate in the action. + +"A fellow feeling makes us wondrous kind," she said bitterly. "After +all there is a way out of the trouble, there has been a way out all +along. Our blessing in disguise in the matter seems to be Mr. +Mayfield. We will ignore for the moment that he has himself brought +the situation about for his own ends. The fact remains that he can +keep the disgrace away. He has offered to avert the catastrophe at a +price. I am the price. By saying one simple word everything is +changed. And in six months, you, my father, are master of Dashwood +absolutely. I have only to say, 'Yes,' and the thing is done. It is a +simple little word, which has been the cause of untold misery to +thousands of poor girls. But, after all, there have been greater +sacrifices for less satisfactory results. And now let us go into +dinner." + +The girl spoke quietly enough, but nothing could disguise the +bitterness and scorn that rang in every word. It was all very wrong, +it was dictated by motives clearly open to question, but in spite of +everything, it seemed to Ralph that he had never admired Mary more +than he did at that moment. He knew of the anguish of disappointment +and despair that filled her cup to overflowing; he could realise the +difference that the last half-hour had made to her outlook on life; he +knew how much she hated and despised the man to whom she was once more +tied by the hands of Fate. + +He knew also that filial love and affection had nothing whatever to do +with the fatal resolve. It was family pride that was the mainspring of +the action. Mary stood there, proud and defiant now, with the +lamplight streaming on her face, and Ralph knew now that the time was +coming for him to act. The lesson would have to be learned, the bread +of affliction must be eaten to the last sour crust. + +"Will Mr. Darnley please to ring the bell?" Mary went on evenly. "We +shall have the servants wondering what is the matter. It is already +half-past eight, and punctuality is one of the cardinal virtues at the +dower house. If you will look into the mirror opposite, father, you +will see that your tie is all disarranged. . . . Give me your arm, Mr. +Darnley?" + +There was not a trace of any emotion now about Mary. She watched her +father rearranging his tie with a critical air; she began to discuss +the flowers on the dinner table as if nothing had happened out of the +common. She bore the brunt of the conversation all dinner time, for +the others were strangely silent. From time to time Mary flashed a +challenge from her eyes to Ralph, as if defiantly ignoring his views. +And yet she dreaded her next meeting with Darnley. She knew him to be +poor and friendless, she believed him to be of no particular family, +but still she valued his good opinion deeply. She would have denied +that if it had been put to her directly, but in her heart of hearts +she could not disguise the true state of her feelings. + +"Why are you looking at me so?" she said. + +"Was I?" Ralph asked. "I had no idea that my looks betrayed me so +badly. But I will discuss the matter with you when we are alone." + +It was an audacious speech, but it sounded quite naturally from +Ralph's lips. Mary could feel the colour rising to her cheeks; she +felt annoyed that she could not better control her feelings. For the +rest of the meal she was silent like the rest, and said no more till +Lady Dashwood gave the signal for departure. + + + + +CHAPTER XXVI. +IN RECKLESS MOOD + + +Once the ladies had departed, Sir George brightened visibly. He +reached out eagerly for the claret and drank two glasses rapidly. +Ralph declined the decanters, and also the cigar that his host handed +him. He contented himself with a cigarette; he replied more or less +vaguely to Sir George's idle chatter. It seemed almost incomprehensible +to him that a father could sacrifice a daughter to a scoundrel like +Mayfield, and accept the situation as if it had been the most natural +thing in the world. + +"I feel bound to have a few words with you, Sir George," he said +presently. "More by accident than anything else I seem to have been +dragged into your family secrets. We will not go into the reason why I +was in a position to render you a service a night or two ago. It is +unfortunate that that service should have proved useless, but it is +more than probable than those papers will turn up again." + +"Never," Sir George said emphatically. "Mayfield will take care of +that. He knows that so long as he holds the papers I am quite in his +power. He will lend me the money to put me right in the comfortable +assurance that at the expiration of six months it will come back to +him again. Take him all in all, Mayfield is perhaps the most clever +scoundrel that I have ever come across, which is saying a great deal." + +"You are convinced that Mayfield is a finished scoundrel, then?" + +"My dear fellow, what other conclusion could I come to? His +every action proves it. He has worked this thing out in the most +cold-blooded way. The fellow ought to be hounded out of society and +kicked out of every respectable house. No club should tolerate him. +He's a rascal clean through." + +There was honest indignation ringing in every word that Sir George +said. Ralph listened with cynical amusement. + +"And yet you are going to give your only child as a hostage to the man +who has planned your social ruin," he said. "You are going to sell +your daughter, and the price is to be the silence of a scoundrel! Good +heavens, man, can't you realise the enormity of your crime? To save +yourself from unpleasantness, you permit your daughter to give herself +up to a lifetime of horror and degradation. Is this a specimen of your +family pride? You are so fond of the race, so passionately attached to +it, that you are paving the way for that rascal Mayfield eventually to +succeed you as the head of the house! If you do this thing you will be +judged for it, as sure as we are face to face at this moment. If you +permit it, then you are a greater rascal by far than even Mayfield +is." + +Ralph's words rang out clear and true, his voice vibrated with anger. +A dull flush mounted to the face of the elder man, a feeble anger +filled his eyes. + +"I can't permit you to speak to me like this," he protested. "I--I +must be the best judge of what is right and proper for my child. And +Mary is pretty certain to have her own way in the end. My good fellow, +you speak as if Mary's future was in your special keeping. Anybody +would think that you had fallen in love with the girl." + +"I have," Ralph said calmly. "I love Mary with my whole heart and +soul. I can see the beauties of her mind as clearly as I can see the +beauty of her face under that crust of pride and arrogance. It will be +my task to remove the husk so that the flower can be seen in all its +loveliness. It may not trouble you much, it may be no particular +satisfaction to you, but Mary is not going to marry Horace Mayfield. +When the time comes, Mary will marry _me_. But I fear that there is a +time of humiliation and suffering and poverty before her first, +poverty in which you will have your share, Sir George. It rests +practically in the girl's own hands; she can take up the sunshine of +the future when she chooses." + +"The fellow's mad," Sir George muttered. "Clean mad. My dear Darnley, +you are talking the most abject nonsense. On your own confession you +are a poor man; you have lost everything as I did by trusting to that +scoundrel. I mean to Mayfield, who----" + +"Precisely. We both know that man to be what he is. And in spite of +what you know, you are going to let your daughter marry him and give +her your blessing. Truly the family pride of which you boast is a poor +thing! You are prepared to commit a crime to support it. Now tell me +your honest opinion--do you suppose for a moment that Mayfield would +marry Mary if she came to him empty-handed?" + +Sir George shook his head; he was man of the world enough to see +Ralph's point. + +"I don't think he would," he said. "Mayfield is sufficient of a +business man to know the value of money. Of course he's fond of the +girl, which is quite natural. But I fail to see what your question has +to do with the matter." + +Ralph was not blind to the hopelessness of his task. Truly it is +difficult to know the real standard of even one's closest friend. Up +to a certain point, Ralph had regarded Sir George as an honourable +man, who would have shrunk from any act calculated to pain or harm any +fellow creature. Dashwood would probably have protested himself that +such was the case. And yet here he was, prepared to sacrifice his only +child on the altar of his sinful selfishness. + +A bitter contempt filled Ralph; he would have liked to turn on this +man and tear him to tatters with sharp-edged words. Were all people +alike when it came to the test? Ralph wondered. He half rose from his +seat, and then sat down again. It was impossible to quarrel with +Mary's father; there was nothing to gain by such a course. And Sir +George seemed to divine little of what was passing in the mind of his +young companion. + +The elder man had regained his equanimity now. He was sure that Mary +would do what he called the right thing. It was rather a nuisance, and +so forth, but then it was absurd to imagine that any girl could +imperil the good name of such a family as the Dashwoods. As Sir George +sipped his wine, he caught sight of his own head and shoulders in a +Florentine mirror on the far side of the room, and, unconsciously +almost, set his tie straight. It seemed incredible to Ralph that the +man could think of such things at such a moment. But there it was. Sir +George poured out for himself another glass of wine. + +"I can see that you are vexed," he said in his polished easy way. "As +a friend of ours you naturally would be. In addition, you are +naturally prejudiced against our friend, Horace Mayfield. So am I, but +we must make the best of it. After all, there are many standards of +honour. Mayfield is a business man; he has been trained to methods +which are not in accordance with our views. All is fair in love and +war, he would argue. We must not be too hard on our fellow creatures, +Darnley." + +"The fellow is a scoundrel," Ralph said hoarsely. "He is bad to the +very core of his being. He would never see the inside of Dashwood Hall +again if you could be free of him. And when I think of your daughter +as that man's wife----" + +Ralph paused. He was unable to proceed. His quick imagination +travelled on ahead of him; he could picture Mary's future in the +darkest colours. He knew only too well the fire and force and passion +that lay under the cold exterior. He could guess at the unspeakable +humiliation to come from Mayfield's very touch. And this would go on +not for days, but for years. And Mary would never murmur, she would +confide in nobody, she would hug the galling chains to her breast +until the canker entered the heart of the flower and killed it ... + +But Dashwood was talking again. Ralph was so lost in his own gloomy +thoughts that he had some difficulty in picking up the thread. + +"And there is another thing, my dear fellow," Sir George murmured. +"You will excuse my saying so, but you are taking on yourself a little +too much. Mary owes her life to you on two different occasions. I am +sure that we are both of us exceedingly grateful to you. And you have +proved yourself to be a real friend in other ways. Still, that does +not give you the right to harp upon this topic quite so freely. When +Mary marries Mayfield----" + +"She never will do so," Ralph cried, forgetting himself for the +moment. "Rest assured that this hateful marriage will never take +place. You may look surprised, but wait and see. I have not finished +with Mayfield yet. After this evening is over, and I have heard Miss +Dashwood's decision for the last time----" + +"I decline to discuss the matter any further, really I do," Sir George +protested. "My dear fellow, your remarks are in bad taste. As a +gentleman, you must see that such is the case. I must ask you to +change the subject." + +Ralph placed a firm bridle upon his tongue. He had almost forgotten +himself; he had come very near to betraying the great secret. + +"I beg your pardon," he said. "As you say, I am going too far. I shall +not err in that way again, but will leave you in peace to your cigar +and your claret. Perhaps I shall be able to get some music in the +drawing-room. The quietude of this house fascinates me, all the more +because I have not been accustomed to this kind of thing." + +Sir George smiled in a benign manner. + +"I can understand your feelings," he said. "By all means leave me to +my cigar. It has been a very disturbing evening." + + + + +CHAPTER XXVII. +A WARNING + + +Ralph crossed the great hall in the direction of the drawing-room. He +had made up his mind what to do. So far as he could judge, the blow +would have to fall before long. When once Mayfield had an inkling of +the truth, Ralph felt pretty sure that Mary would be no longer under +the necessity of submitting to his persecutions. Mayfield posed as a +rich man, and indeed he seemed to have the command of money when he +needed it, but Ralph had reason to know that there was a deal of +tinsel mixed up with the gold. If it could be proved to Mayfield that +Mary was no longer an heiress he would refuse to carry out his part of +the contract. He would recognise at once that the whole scheme was a +failure, and his cautious philosophy would do the rest. + +There were two ways of getting rid of Mayfield, the first being for +Ralph to declare his own identity. But by doing so he would go far to +defeat his darling ambition of winning Mary's love on his own merits. +Still, he had been prepared to run this risk if Mayfield's +persecutions continued. But now Fate had placed in his hands another +weapon by which it was possible to be rid of Mayfield and carry on the +love campaign at the same time. Whether this alternative would have to +be used without delay depended on Mary. Ralph meant to see her now and +force her to say what she was going to do. There was no time like the +present. In the silence and the moonlight this thing should be done. + +Just for a moment it seemed to Ralph that the drawing-room was empty. +There were the shaded lamps throwing a subdued light on the old +furniture and the panelled walls. Ill at ease as he was, Ralph was +conscious of the refined, soothing air of the place. Then a gentle +voice called him, and he crossed to a distant corner of the room where +Lady Dashwood was seated. Her face was white and troubled. + +"My dear lad," she whispered, "I felt certain that you would come to +me. Sir George cares nothing so long as he has his comforts. Mary is +out of the room; she has gone up to see old Patience, so that you can +speak freely. This is a terrible catastrophe; it places that poor +child absolutely in the grip of the scoundrel. She recognises that; +she is prepared to bow to the inevitable. You have only to look into +her face to see what she is going to do. And I am to blame for the +whole miserable crime." + +"My dear Lady Dashwood, how could you possibly avoid it?" + +"Oh, you will know some day when the truth is told. Ah, if you had a +bare idea of what a miserable, wicked old woman I am. . . . But there +is no occasion to go into that here. The question is, can you help me, +can you do anything to prevent this thing? I used to pride myself on +the fact that I had a great deal of influence over Mary. But when it +comes to a question of family pride, I am helpless. Still, this +marriage must be prevented at any cost. If you will not speak out, I +shall be compelled to do so." + +"There is no occasion," Ralph said. "I pray you to leave me to do this +in my own way. Mary will never become the wife of Horace Mayfield." + +A murmur of relief came from the aged listener. Her face cleared +somewhat, but the tears were still dim in her eyes. At the same time, +Ralph's words were a great comfort to her. She laid her fingers on his +hand lovingly. + +"I like to hear you speak like that," she whispered. "It reminds me of +your--of my dear son. Ralph, are you sure that you can carry out your +boast?" + +"Quite, Lady Dashwood. As surely as I am standing here before you, I +can prevent this hateful marriage. I can prevent it even if Mary tries +to thwart me. But I must have her decision from her own lips first. I +am going to be very cruel to be very kind in the long run. And +whatever happens, I am going to ask you to trust me implicitly. Even +if things look very dark for us all, you are not to lose your faith. +Remember, if events seem to point to the triumph of one who is hateful +to you, it is all being done with one end in view. Now promise." + +"My dear boy, I promise freely. When you look at me with those brown +eyes and speak to me with that voice from the other side of the grave, +I could promise you anything. I feel that you have come to save me; +that my life is destined to end in peace. But I am afraid that Mary is +going to suffer yet." + +"Oh, she is," Ralph said almost sternly. "It is good for her that she +should suffer. But I shall have no fear for the result after she is +tried in the furnace. Maybe I am no better than a Quixotic fool, but I +have my aim clear before me. And now I must see Mary for some moments +alone." + +"I will send her to you," Lady Dashwood murmured as she rose from the +chair. "Ralph, you fill me with new hope and courage. I feel that I am +going to do some good with the remainder of my life yet. But do not be +too hard on the child, remember that she is more or less what I have +made her. And may she listen to the voice of reason!" + +It was a little time later that Mary came in. She looked white and +weary; her eyes had a metallic gleam in them. All the same, she +flushed under Ralph's steady gaze. She murmured something to the +effect that she had no idea Lady Dashwood was not there. + +"Never mind about Lady Dashwood for the present," Ralph said. "In +fact, I asked her to leave us together for a time. I have something +important to say to you, Mary. Come out on the terrace with me." + +It was not so much a request as a command and Mary felt the hot blood +rising to her face. And yet she could not decline coldly with Ralph's +eyes on hers. He seemed to possess some magnetic influence over her. +Without a word they passed side by side out on to the terrace. + +It was a perfect night, with a full moon swinging high overhead. In +the distance the silver light played on the roofs and chimneys of the +Hall. Ralph stood in rapt contemplation of the scene for a moment. + +"It is absolutely perfect," he said. "A good old house in a grand old +English landscape. And for three hundred years a Dashwood has reigned +here. Truly a thing to swell the heart with honest pride. No wonder +you are fond of it, Mary; no wonder you would make any sacrifice to +retain possession of it. But the price is too heavy. Tomorrow you must +send Horace Mayfield about his business." + +"It is too late," Mary said coldly. "I have made up my mind. Other +women have made far heavier sacrifices than this. And I shall get used +to it." + +"Never! You are not going to do it. I will not permit you to commit +this sin." + +The girl's face blazed with anger, then her cheeks grew white again. +She would have liked to turn upon Ralph with passionate scorn, but her +sense of truth and justice held her back. For what he said she knew to +be dreadfully, hopelessly true. + +"Yes, a sin," Ralph said quietly. "The deliberate violation of a +sacrament. You will go to the altar with a lie on your lips, your +whole life will be a lie. To my mind, one of the most horrible things +is the sight of a young girl who has married an old man for the sake +of his money. To me it is hideous. And your sin will be worse than +that, far worse. Picture it, think of it, Mary, before it is too +late." + +The girl's head drooped, in spite of her pride and her courage, the +tears streamed down her face, her frame was shaken by passionate sobs. + +"Too late," she said. "Oh, I cannot draw back." + +"Because you sacrifice everything to your foolish pride," Ralph +replied. "I see that it is quite useless for me to plead any longer. +Therefore, I must take my own way to prevent your wasting your life in +this fashion. Would Horace Mayfield care for you if he heard that you +had lost your fortune?" + +"The question is needless," Mary whispered. "Of course he wouldn't." + +"Let us argue the matter out from that point of view, then. Say that a +merciful Providence interferes to prevent this sin of yours. You lose +your fortune. Mind, there are many less likely things than this. Your +fortune takes wings and flies away. You are free from Mayfield, and +also you lose the Hall. What would you do then?" + +"But you are picturing an almost impossible case. Such a thing is not +the least likely." + +"Indeed, it is. The late heir to the estate vanished and never +returned. There was a violent quarrel, the facts of which are only +known to Lady Dashwood. Her son died far away without even +communicating with his relatives again. So far as we know, he may have +left a son behind him. He may have told that son everything or +nothing. But suppose that son finds out the truth. What is to prevent +his coming back and claiming everything? He would get the title as a +matter of course; he would get the estates also if he puts in an +appearance before another six months have gone by. If this happens, +you are no better than a pauper, Mary. What do you say to that?" + +"I do not believe in the existence of the man." + +"No, but I do. Mary, that young man lives. He will declare himself and +bring in his proofs before many days are over. He is the instrument +chosen by Providence to prevent this deliberate sin of yours. Your +reign at Dashwood is over; within a few days you will be as poor +as--as myself. Thank God, we shall save you yet." + +A little cry came from the girl's lips and she stood like a white +statue in the moonlight. + + + + +CHAPTER XXVIII. +MORAL FORCE + + +It was some time before Mary spoke again. Ralph wondered if she had +any inkling of the real truth. He had perhaps said a little too much, +and perhaps, on the other hand, he had not said quite enough. Suppose +that Mary jumped to the immediate conclusion that he was the heir. +What then? She would ask him the question point blank, and he would be +compelled to speak the truth. + +But Mary's perception was at fault for once. As her eyes sought +Ralph's face it was evident that she had not the remotest idea who he +was. And this was just as it should be, from Ralph's point of view. + +For he was doing what the world would call a foolish and Quixotic +thing. He loved this girl with his whole heart and soul; he knew that +she was the one woman for him. But not yet; until that sinful pride +was humbled in the dust there would be no happiness for Mary. Her +character would have to be cleansed and purified in the fire of +adversity first. Ralph knew quite well what noble qualities lay under +that mask of pride and ice. + +He could have called the girl his; he knew it. He had only to proclaim +his identity, and Mary Dashwood would have asked no better fate than +to become the wife of the head of the family; she might have given her +heart into the bargain. + +But Ralph would have none of it that way. Mary should come to him and +sue for pardon; she should proclaim in all sincerity that love was +best of all. She should feel that there was something far better than +being mistress of Dashwood Hall. Then the truth might be told and the +old order of things re-established. + +All this Ralph had worked out in his mind as a novelist works out a +plot. And Fate had played into his hands. A stern, hard time was +coming for Mary, but it would be the making of her in the end. Ralph +could see it all in his mind's eye as he stood by Mary's side and +looked into her troubled eyes. + +"I don't understand," she said slowly. "I am afraid that I am not so +hard and resolute as I believed myself to be. And things have moved so +rapidly lately, that I am dazed. First comes the knowledge that my +father is--is----" + +The girl hesitated and broke down. Ralph completed her sentence for +her. It sounded harsh and unkind, but the lesson had to be learned. + +"Is not the man you took him for," Ralph said. "His family pride is +not a durable article. To play his part properly he should have coldly +and politely told Mayfield to do his worst, and ordered him out of the +house. That is the course one has a right to expect from the head of +the house of Dashwood. But, alas, for the weakness of poor human +nature! Your father knows Mayfield to be an abandoned scoundrel, and +yet he makes a compact with him. A bargain is arranged between them, +and you are the price to be paid, Mary. And, upon my word, your pride +seems to me to be as hollow a thing as that of your father." + +"That is false," Mary cried passionately. "I am sacrificing everything +for the honour of the house." + +"Not from my point of view. As I said before, you are committing a +great and deadly sin with your eyes open. At the altar you are +prepared to soil your lips with a horrible perjury. You are going to +promise to love, honour, and obey the man whose very presence makes +you shudder. But, fortunately, there is no need for that. To all +practical purposes you have ceased to be mistress of Dashwood, and +when Mayfield knows this, he will dismiss you as a mere incident in +his career. The new heir will take possession of the title and the +property." + +"I am glad we have got back to him again," Mary said coldly. "Your +personal remarks are exceedingly distasteful to me. Who is the man you +speak of?" + +"Vincent Dashwood. Did you not guess it before? Has it never occurred +to you that he had some powerful motive that kept him here all this +time? You must be aware how Lady Dashwood dislikes him----" + +"Oh, yes, yes. Several times lately I have asked who the man was, but +I could not succeed in getting a satisfactory reply. I knew that Lady +Dashwood was afraid of the man. He is not a bit like a gentleman, but +seeing that he was a Dashwood, I have always been more or less civil +to him." + +"He does not think so," Ralph said with a smile. "In fact, he thinks +that you have treated him very distantly and haughtily. He hinted to +me that he was going to make you pay for it later. Still, a most +objectionable creature." + +"I seem to be surrounded with them lately," Mary said bitterly. "But +why all this mystery and secrecy? If the man is the person he claims +to be, why did he not make his identity known long ago? Oh, he is an +impostor, defrauding Lady Dashwood. So long as he can get money out of +her he will do nothing." + +"Perhaps Lady Dashwood will enlighten us on that point," Ralph said. +"I may say that in California I knew the late Ralph Dashwood very +well. Had I not done so, I should not have been here on private +business today----" + +"Then you know if the late heir to the property had a son?" Mary +interrupted. + +"Certainly he did. And Vincent Dashwood claims to be Ralph's son. If +he can prove this, then he takes the estates and the title. I have +talked the matter over with him, and I gather that he is waiting for +one particular document before claiming the property. The document is +his mother's marriage certificate. You may say that that is easy to +obtain. Not so in California, where records of that class are not kept +so rigidly as they are here. Lady Dashwood will tell you that the +young man came with the strongest proofs of his identity, letters that +she had written to her son, and other papers of that kind. He knows +all the secrets of the House. Lady Dashwood never catches him +tripping." + +"Very strange!" Mary said. "And yet he makes no claim!" + +"For the reason that I told you. He led me to understand that he is +loth to disturb existing arrangements during the lifetime of her +ladyship. On the whole, I regard this as an exceedingly fortunate +business for you!" + +"Fortunate?" Mary exclaimed. "An incident that renders my father and +myself penniless!" + +"Yes. It prevents you becoming the wife of Horace Mayfield. Directly +he hears of this thing he will turn his back on you for ever. He is +too much a man of the world to waste time in idle regrets; he will +look out for another to take your place. On the whole, it seems to me +that Fate has been very kind to you." + +"Indeed." Mary's voice was very cold, her face colder still. "You seem +to be glad." + +"I _am_ glad. I am rejoiced to find that Providence is not going to +allow you to wreck your happiness and imperil your future in this way. +Nothing could please me better than to see you dependent upon your own +exertions for a living. You will be all the better for it; it will +cleanse and purify you. And then you will discover that the best thing +in the world for a good woman is a good man's love. It is my love for +you, Mary, that makes me take this view of things, that impels me to +rejoice in the fact that you are nearer to me tonight than you have +ever been before. And some day you will own it." + +"Never!" Mary cried passionately. "Oh, you make me hate you, you make +me forget how much I owe you. I could never become your wife." + +Ralph smiled. There was something very soothing in the sweetness of +the night. Many a time afterward that scene rose up before his mind. + +"You _shall_ be my wife," he said in tones of quiet power. "The scales +will fall from your eyes and you will ask me to forgive you. Oh, my +dear, I know the beauty of your true nature better than you know it +yourself. I can see it all before me as clearly as if I were endowed +with the gift of prophecy. We all have our lesson to learn, and it is +no fault of yours that the lesson has come so late. And when my +confession has followed yours, we shall know the meaning of true +happiness, but not before." + +As if he had said the final word, Ralph turned in the direction of the +house. A world of passionate scorn, defiance, anger trembled on Mary's +parted lips. How dare this man, how dare any man, talk to her like +this? And yet at the same time the girl was fully aware of the power +and masterful purpose behind Ralph's words. She was glad in her inmost +heart to know that he cared for her so much. After all, Mary had her +dreams of love and romance like other girls. She was dimly conscious +of the sweet and tender womanhood that underlay her pride and ice. And +she knew that no scorn or invective could turn Ralph from his purpose. + +"Very well," she said resignedly. "You are a strong man, and I am a +weak woman. I daresay you imagine yourself to be paying me a +compliment. But I should put that dream aside if I were you, for it is +never likely to come true." + +"It is no dream," Ralph smiled. "Nor is the happiness so very far off. +Now let me take you back to the house again, for it is getting late." + +As Mary slipped her hand under the proffered arm, a gentle sigh +escaped her. She wondered why she could not be angry with this man, +why every word of his thrilled her and filled her with such happiness +as could not be expressed in words. + + + + +CHAPTER XXIX. +STRATEGY + + +Meanwhile the police were pushing on their investigations into the +causes leading up to the fire at Dashwood Hall with great energy. The +clue of the matchbox was held to be an important one, and now that the +owner of the toy had been discovered, important developments were +expected. In the _interim_, Vincent Dashwood returned from London, +having forgotten all about his loss. It was brought back to his mind +with unpleasant force after luncheon the following day by a visit from +the inspector of police. + +Dashwood was lounging at the table, smoking a cigarette. Lady Dashwood +sat opposite to him, her slim hands folded in her lap. She was looking +white and worn; her eyes seemed to seek her companion in weary misery. + +"I don't see what you have to complain of," Dashwood was saying. "I've +done everything to please you. Here I am, a kind of mystery in the +house, living more or less on your bounty, whilst all the time I might +have been Sir Vincent Dashwood, with a fine property behind me. And +any time I want a few pounds you grumble." + +"That is not a true statement of the case," Lady Dashwood said in her +resigned way. "You told me you could do nothing till you received the +certificate of your father's marriage. As to the rest, I accepted you +implicitly as my grandson. After the proofs that you placed in my +hands, I had no alternative." + +"Much as you would have liked one," Dashwood sneered. + +"Yes, if you will force me to speak plainly. Many a time I have prayed +that a child of my son's should be sent to me. But you are not in the +least like your father. He was wild and headstrong, and he never +forgave the shameful way we treated him, but he was a gentleman." + +"Meaning that I'm not one, eh? Well, hard words break no bones. For +the sake of peace and quietness, I've kept my claim from everybody but +you; to please you I have suppressed the truth till I can get that +certificate. And in return you promised me that I should not suffer. +And now you refuse me a paltry £500." + +"I have not refused it you. I have not the money. And you have had all +my jewels, jewels valued at nearly £30,000. In my weakness and folly I +parted with the property which does not belong to me. £30,000 in the +space of a year! Where has the money gone?" + +"Now if that isn't just like a woman," Dashwood growled. "I daresay +those stones were valued at the sum you mention, but to get that for +them is a different matter. To be candid, I pawned your gems for less +than a third of that money. And when I tried to raise a further loan +on the same security, I was met with a pointblank refusal. So you see, +I have not been so very extravagant after all." + +Lady Dashwood sighed bitterly. She was getting used to vulgar scenes +like this. And yet there was hope that before long she would be freed +from the bloodsucker. She watched him now as he sat sprawling in his +chair, flicking the ashes of his cigarette into a priceless Sevres +dessert dish. How could she ever have taken him for her grandson, she +wondered? Why had she been so weak and feeble? + +A servant entered at the same moment with an intimation to the effect +that somebody desired to see Mr. Dashwood. The gentleman was waiting +in the dining-room. A dull flush of annoyance came over Dashwood's +face. + +"Some meddling creditor," he muttered. "A London tradesman, who has +managed to get my address from somewhere. Goodbye to all peace if once +my retreat has got known. Tell the man to call again, Charles. I can't +see him." + +"Begging your pardon, sir," the footman said respectfully, "it is not +a tradesman, and he said he must see you on the most important +business. The gentleman is Inspector Drake, the head constable from +Longtown." + +Dashwood's teeth clicked together; his face turned to a dull ashen +hue. He had been suddenly stricken by some mortal fear; he could not +disguise the fact from Lady Dashwood. Her heart sank within her as she +glanced fearfully at the white set face on the other side of the +table. She wondered what new disgrace was here. + +"I--I'll come in a minute," Dashwood muttered thickly. "This room is +so hot that it makes one feel quite faint. Charles, give me a glass of +brandy from the sideboard. A large glass without water. Ah!" + +The white face resumed a little of its colour and the teeth ceased to +chatter as the potent spirit got in its work. With an uneasy swagger, +Dashwood crossed over to the door, but his heart was beating thick and +fast and there was a great lump in his throat that he could not quite +succeed in swallowing. But the inspector of police knew nothing of +this as he responded curtly enough to Dashwood's insolent salutation. + +"And what can I do for you?" the latter asked. "This is a very +inconvenient hour for me." + +"Very sorry for that, sir," the official said coolly. "But my duty is +plain. I should like to have a few words with you as to the fire at +Dashwood Hall." + +A strange sense of relief, almost of exultation, came over the +listener. He could breathe more freely now; all his swagger came back +to him. The visit of the officer had nothing to do with any episode +out of a dark and dubious past. + +"What can I tell you about that?" he asked. "I know nothing of it." + +"Well, it's like this, sir," Drake proceeded to explain. "We have +established beyond all shadow of a doubt that the fire was not caused +by accident. Straw was laid deliberately on the floor of the hall, and +as deliberately soaked in petroleum. We found the rest of the straw, +and also we found the empty drum of oil, which had been taken from one +of the outhouses. All this must have happened in the early hours of +the morning. It was a very good thing that the timbers of the house +are so sound, or nothing could have saved the place. As it is, the +fire burnt itself out." + +"But what has all this got to do with me?" Dashwood asked impatiently. + +"Half a minute, sir. I was merely telling you that this was the work +of an incendiary. Once having established the fact, we will get to +business. We searched in the ashes, and we were so fortunate as to +find this." + +Drake held up the familiar matchbox and handed it to Dashwood. He +looked just a little uneasy, but there was no suggestion of guilt +about him. + +"We found this peculiar matchbox in the straw, sir," Drake went on. +"The theory is that it was dropped by somebody who was connected with +the fire. Suppose that the culprit was disturbed, or perhaps the +sudden blaze was so fierce that the box fell and could not be +recovered. I want to know if you have seen this box before?" + +Dashwood turned the silver toy over in his hands for a moment. There +was nothing to be gained by concealing the truth. + +"I understand your insinuation," he said. "As a matter of fact, that +box belongs to me, and, as I dare say you are aware, my initials are +engraved upon it. The box is a novelty in its way; I bought it some +years ago in America. Do you mean to say that this was found in the +ashes of the fire?" + +"It was, sir. I picked it up myself. The butler, Slight, recognised it +as belonging to you. Now you will see why I came to you." + +"Oh, of course. So your beautiful intelligence suggests that I had +some hand in that fire. If you only knew the true position of affairs, +you would know that I am the very last person in the world to want +anything to happen to the Hall. But that is a detail which we may come +to presently. Meanwhile, I am prepared to accept the responsibility of +calling myself the owner of the box. I must have been careless enough +to drop it and somebody picked it up--the somebody who tried to set +fire to the Hall. I'm afraid that I can't tell you any more than +that." + +"All the same, I'm afraid I must go a little farther, sir," Drake +said. "That box is yours and it was found in the ashes of the fire. It +appears that some time before the fire broke out one of the servants +at the Hall was called up to take a message to Mr. Mayfield, who is +staying in a farmhouse not far from here. The servant's name is +Walters. He went back to his quarters over the stables, and as it was +a fine night and he did not feel in the least sleepy, he sat by the +open window and smoked a cigarette. He says that a little before +two--close to the time when the fire broke out--he saw somebody come +from the direction of the house and cross the lawn. The figure was +moving rapidly, and apparently desired to escape observation. When +Walters was asked if he could recognise the figure in question, he +said positively that he could. I asked him to give it a name, and, to +make a long story short, he said it was you, sir." + +There was no mistaking the dry suggestiveness in Drake's manner. He +was not in the least apologetic now, he made his statement with the +air of a man who is sure of his ground. Dashwood changed colour +slightly. + +"This is ridiculous," he cried. "The idea that I should have any +motive for destroying the old house is out of the question. If you +knew who I really am----" + +"That is not the point, sir. The question is were you there?" + +"Yes, I was," Dashwood said in a kind of sullen desperation. "I was +out at that hour. The best thing I can do is to come as far as the +Hall and have it out with Walters. I see that the time has come when I +must tell the truth." + + + + +CHAPTER XXX. +THE HEIR OF THE HOUSE + + +Sir George Dashwood sat in the Gothic library at Dashwood Hall +bewailing his hard fate in a manner which would have been called +peevish in a less distinguished man. He wanted to know when he was +going to get back the full possession of his house again; he desired +to be informed why Horace Mayfield had not been to see him. He did not +appear to be listening to what Mary had to say. Also he was full of +the fact that the more or less mysterious Vincent Dashwood had made a +dastardly attempt to reduce the old house to ashes. + +"You don't seem to understand," Mary said with some impatience. She +was standing in the window of the library with the sunshine full on +her face. Through the great mullion, with its crested devices, she +could see the deer in the park beyond. "You do not seem to comprehend +that this is a blessing in disguise. So far as I can see, the house is +not a bit the worse for what might have been a terrible disaster. I am +bound to confess that I don't like Mr. Dashwood, but at the same time +I am quite sure that he had nothing to do with the fire--the fire +which prevented anybody from knowing of the disgrace that had fallen +upon us." + +"No thanks to that young man," Sir George grumbled. "I tell you he was +responsible for the fire. His matchbox was found there. Walters saw +him by the house. Why Lady Dashwood doesn't get rid of the fellow +passes my comprehension." + +"But I have just been trying to explain to you, only you won't +listen," Mary responded with some show of impatience. "There are the +most powerful reasons why Mr. Vincent Dashwood does not desire the +destruction of the house. Mr. Darnley told me all about it last night. +Vincent Dashwood claims to be the son of Ralph Dashwood." + +Sir George started as if something had stung him. He had been so +wrapped up in his own selfishness up to now that he had no ears for +anything else. Mary's statement almost overpowered him. Many things +suddenly became plain to the baronet's understanding. + +He rose to his feet and paced up and down the room in terrible +agitation. + +"Is this really a fact?" he demanded. "I cannot believe it, and yet, +and yet, I have met that fellow a good many times, and the oftener I +see him, the more does he impress me unfavourably. I see now that +there must have been some powerful reason why Lady Dashwood should +tolerate the man. But why did she not tell us at once, why did she go +on feeding him with money? for I can now quite see why she was not in +a position to do me a favour the other night. If what you say is +correct, Mary, then we are little better than beggars. Still, the +reason for all this mystery----" + +"Is not so strange when one comes to understand, father. It appears +that Ralph Dashwood married an American lady somewhere in the wildest +part of California. There has been a great difficulty in finding the +marriage certificate. Lady Dashwood is quite convinced that the man we +are speaking of is her grandson." + +Sir George broke out into feeble whinings, he grew almost tearful. And +as he became weak and sentimental, so did Mary grow harder. If this +crowning blow had to fall, then nobody should hear a word of weakness +from her. For her part she could have fought this man, even if it had +left her penniless before the world. She clenched her teeth upon her +lip to keep down the rising tide of bitter reproaches. Then she turned +to see that Vincent Dashwood, together with Inspector Drake, had +entered the room. The former looked heated and indignant, for he had +been giving a piece of his mind to the policeman. + +"I am glad to find you here, Sir George," he shouted. "The police are +making all kinds of accusations against me. They say, forsooth, that I +have tried to burn the house down, and all because a matchbox of mine +was found in the ashes. I suppose I am not the first man in the world +who has lost a matchbox. And I've been telling Drake here that I have +every reason that the house should not be injured." + +"So my daughter informs me," Sir George replied in the same whining +voice. "Seeing that you claim to be the son of Ralph Dashwood----" + +The other man laughed defiantly. All the same he could not meet the +glance that Mary turned upon him. His bold eyes were turned to her +face, then they dropped as if looking for something on the floor. + +"I'm very sorry," Drake put in, "but this is a serious matter. The +finding of that box, the mere fact that Mr. Dashwood was seen here at +the hour of the fire, all make it necessary for me to take certain +steps----" + +"I must speak," Vincent Dashwood broke out. "I did not mean to +proclaim the truth, because I was not ready to do so. And there was +Lady Dashwood to be considered. Still, as I see that Mr. Drake is +prepared to go to the extreme length of arresting me for the alleged +act of arson, I am compelled to declare the truth for my own +protection. Drake tells me that he has lived in the adjacent town of +Longtown all his life, so he must be more or less acquainted with the +family of Dashwood. He knows, for instance, that Mr. Ralph Dashwood +left here forty years ago, and that his friends have seen nothing of +him since. I suppose that statement is not too much for your +intelligence, Drake?" + +"I am quite aware that you are quoting facts, sir," Drake said grimly. + +"Very well. I'm glad to hear that you believe something I say. It is +not generally known, but it will be clearly established before long +that Mr. Ralph Dashwood married an American lady, by whom he had one +child, a son. To go farther, I may say that that son now stands before +you. I am the only son of Ralph Dashwood, born in lawful wedlock, as +Lady Dashwood perfectly well knows, and therefore the property belongs +to me. There is no such person really as Sir George Dashwood; as a +matter of fact, Sir Vincent Dashwood--in other words, myself--is head +of the family and owner of the place. There is only one proof +necessary, and that I hope to have in my hands in a few days. I allude +to the certificate of my parents' wedding. And now, Mr. Drake, after +hearing all this, can you suggest that I should gain anything by +burning this house down? If I had had an impulse in that direction, I +could easily have waited for an opportunity of committing that folly +in a safer fashion." + +Drake was bound to admit that the astounding revelations made all the +difference in the complexion of the case. Sir George Dashwood listened +with a dark look on his face. Mary turned to the door to see that +Ralph Darnley was standing there. The mere knowledge of his presence +seemed to support and comfort her in this trying hour. Yet she did not +feel the poignant sorrow and sense of loss as keenly as she should. + +"Mr. Darnley will tell us if this is true," she cried. + +"Lady Dashwood will tell you so, at any rate," Ralph responded. "I +have taken the liberty of listening to what this gentleman had to say. +It so happens that I can throw considerable light on the story. As I +told you last night, I knew the late Ralph Dashwood very well, though +I had not the honour of meeting the man who claims to be his son. +Perhaps Mr. Dashwood will reply to a few of my questions. Will he tell +me, for instance, in what part of California his mother lived?" + +"Certainly I will," Vincent Dashwood replied without the slightest +hesitation. "It was in Jackson County; I understand the town was +Courville." + +"I should say that is perfectly correct," Ralph said. "In fact, I have +every reason to know that it is correct. And the name of your mother?" + +"Alice Montrose. But where the wedding took place, I can't say just +now." + +"That is also correct," Ralph went on in the same solemn way. "I am in +a position to prove that Alice Montrose was the wife of Ralph +Dashwood. It is the legal verification of the marriage that you seek?" + +"That's it," Dashwood cried eagerly. "Once that is in my possession, +the rest is easy. As I said before, I did not desire to proclaim my +identity just yet for several reasons. But I have been compelled to +speak for the sake of my honour. And if you, Mr. Darnley, who seem to +know so much, can help me to discover that particular document, I +shall be eternally grateful to you. Anything that I can do for you by +way of reward----" + +"I shall make use of you, no doubt," Ralph replied. "Your claim +appears to be a very strong one, and everything is going in your +favour. So far all you say as to the marriage of Ralph Dashwood and +Alice Montrose has been correct. You are in urgent need of the +certificate. Let me make the dramatic situation complete by presenting +you with the paper that you most desire. If you will look at this long +slip of paper, you will see that it is a copy, certified, of the +marriage in question. As you seem to be the person most entitled to +the paper, it is with pleasure that I place it in your hands." + +Vincent Dashwood's face turned from grey to red, and then to deadly +white. Then he suddenly burst out into a hoarse whoop of triumph and +he danced round the room with every manifestation of extravagant joy. +He would have shaken hands with Ralph, only the latter did not seem to +see the trembling moist palm extended to him. + +"Is this real?" Sir George groaned, "or is it all some hideous dream?" + +"It is real enough," Ralph said. "It is a case of 'the King is dead, +long live the King.' Pray allow me to offer you my congratulations, +Sir Vincent." + + + + +CHAPTER XXXI. +UNDER WHICH LORD? + + +Vincent Dashwood seemed to expand, he stood there smiling benignly, he +had lost his strange uneasiness of manner altogether. And yet Mary did +not fail to notice the furtive look in his eyes. There must be +something wrong here, she thought; it was impossible to regard this +man as the head of the family. For three hundred years Dashwood had +been ruled by a gentleman, a man of honour. + +And this smirking creature, with the red, grinning face and cunning +eyes, was neither. Mary knew him to be little better than a +blackmailer. And if he was the person he claimed to be, why had he not +come forward and proclaimed his identity before? She could not believe +that Vincent Dashwood had hidden his light under a bushel merely +because he was short of one particular document. + +The girl did not believe that he would have spoken now had not the +awkward incident of the matchbox compelled him to do so. And here was +Ralph Darnley actually pushing forward the cause of the new claimant +and giving him the one proof that he needed. + +And yet the thing was impossible; surely the walls of the house would +collapse about the head of so poor a ruler as Vincent Dashwood. The +old familiar objects around Mary filled her with a kind of dumb pain. +She was going to lose them all--the pictures and the gardens, the +horses in the stables, and the very deer that loved her. What the +future held for her, Mary had not considered. She brought herself back +to the present with an effort; she became aware that Vincent Dashwood +was speaking. + +"This--this is really extraordinary," he cackled. "Like a scene from a +play. I had my own good reasons for not proclaiming my identity for +the present, but you all see that circumstances have been too strong +for me. And then at the critical moment Mr. Darnley comes along with +that paper. How it came into his possession----" + +"That is easily explained," Ralph said in his grave way. "It was given +to me by Mr. Ralph Dashwood in circumstances that I need not go into +here. Primarily, the certificate was to have been forwarded to the +solicitors of this estate." + +"Quite so, quite so," Dashwood said loftily. "Really, it doesn't +matter. The point is that my proofs are now complete. My idea was to +do nothing and say nothing till Lady Dashwood--my grandmother--had +become resigned to the change in the condition of affairs. It is +perhaps natural that the good lady should look coldly on me and that +all her affection should be for Mary here. And I am bound to say that +Mary has not treated me with the friendliness that I could have +wished." + +Hot words rose to the girl's lips, but she checked herself with an +effort. Doubtless the new heir was doing his best to be agreeable, +perhaps he did not know how offensive he was. + +"But I am not going to be vindictive," he resumed. "It is only natural +that you should feel a little sore and hurt. One doesn't turn out of a +snug crib like this without turning a hair. As a matter of fact, there +is no reason why you should go at all, at least, not for some time to +come. I don't suppose I shall ever marry--I'm not that kind of chap. +There is no reason why Mary and the old gentleman and myself shouldn't +be very snug here together. Mr. Dashwood wants little more than the +run of his teeth at his time of life." + +Mary's cheeks flamed at the unconscious humiliation. She was being +offered a home as a pauper and a dependent; it was infinitely worse +than going into a workhouse. Mary had never dreamed of being humbled +and crushed in the dust like this. Before she could reply, Slight +looked into the doorway, his dry, red face screwed up into the +semblance of respect. He announced Horace Mayfield in a loud voice. + +Mayfield came in, glass in eye, serene and self-confident, his hard +mouth looking more like a steel trap than ever. The quiet triumph in +his eyes was not lost on Mary; she did not fail to note the gleam of +possession as he glanced at her. There was cold consolation in the +knowledge that after all Mayfield was powerless to hold her soul and +body in thraldom any longer. + +"I beg your pardon," Mayfield said, "I seem to be intruding on a +family conference or something of that kind. Slight did not tell me, +though I have every reason to believe that he was listening outside +the door. What are you doing here?" + +The question was flung headlong at Vincent Dashwood, who had started +and changed colour as Mayfield came in. Evidently these two knew one +another, for Mayfield was rudely contemptuous, Dashwood cringing yet +defiant. Was there yet another vulgar mystery here? Mary wondered +wearily. + +"Perhaps I had better explain," Ralph said. "This, Mr. Mayfield, is an +unexpected, but nevertheless dramatic situation. Let me present you to +Sir Vincent Dashwood, only son and heir of the late Ralph Dashwood, +who died some time ago. Sir Vincent had some natural hesitation in +declaring his identity; he was loth to upset existing arrangements. We +must all respect proper feeling of that kind. One reason Sir Vincent +had for keeping his personality a secret was the fact that he lacked +the legal proof of his parent's marriage. By a fortunate chance I was +able to supply the omission. Still, we need not go into that. The fact +remains that Sir Vincent has now established his claim, as the family +solicitors will admit without unnecessary delay. Unhappily, this new +condition of affairs makes it very awkward for Sir George--I mean, Mr. +George Dashwood. By this cruel stroke he finds himself practically a +pauper. And on Miss Dashwood the blow falls with the same heavy +weight. The heiress becomes dependent upon the charity of the head of +the family." + +As Ralph spoke his eyes were fixed on Mayfield's. He was searching +keenly for any sign of anger or emotion. But Mayfield did not betray +himself. There was a red spark in his eyes and the big veins stood on +his forehead, but nothing further. And as Ralph proceeded a faint +smile grew at the corners of the cruel mouth. + +"This is exceedingly interesting," he said, "and to think that Sir +Vincent should have kept this from so old a friend as myself." + +There was mocking bitterness in the speech and Dashwood fairly writhed +under it. He seemed to hang in a kind of agony on the next word. His +sigh of relief as Mayfield turned from him was not lost on Mary. +Mayfield turned abruptly to the girl. + +"This will make a great difference to you," he said. "For my own part, +I am disappointed at the strange turn of affairs. Still, I am +philosophic enough to take my chances. In reality I came here to say +goodbye to you. I will not see you for some time to come." + +The whole thing was so cool, so icily audacious, that Mary had no +words for reply. This man had accepted the change in the situation +with instant readiness, there was not so much as a shade of regret in +his voice. Mary had gone out of the sphere of his affection, and he +was prepared to drop her like an old glove. The blood flamed into her +face at this fresh humiliation; the pride of the family was serving +her badly now. Her trembling hands went out to Ralph. He saw what was +passing in her mind. + +"Take me away from here," she whispered. "Take me out into the fresh +air or I shall die. What have I done to deserve this degradation? And +get my father to come, too. Has he lost all his manhood that he stays +here?" + +They went out into the sunshine and the air at length, and Dashwood +was alone with Mayfield. The latter closed the door and lighted a +cigarette. There was a grim ferocity in his eyes that caused Dashwood +to turn sick. + +"So you've done it, you rascal," Mayfield muttered. "I daresay you +will tell me that your hand was more or less forced. Perhaps it was. +And yet if I raise my little finger you will pass the next ten years +of your life in gaol." + +"Don't," Dashwood said with difficulty, "don't talk like that. The +cards were all of them literally forced on me. Why should you mind?" + +"Why should I mind? Why, man alive, you have 'queered my pitch' as +some of your dissolute companions would say. I was going to marry Mary +Dashwood, the great heiress, everything was ready to my hand. A little +later and the thing would have been accomplished. Only one thing +bothered me--I am at my wit's ends for some ready money, which I must +have before long. And, as things stand at present, Mary Dashwood could +not raise anything on her expectations. But I was going to play the +bold game and risk everything, even my liberty, on this stake. I was +never more surprised in my life than when that fellow Darnley +explained the situation. I nearly gave you away." + +"I saw that," Dashwood said hoarsely, "my heart was in my mouth. It +was very good of you to remember an old pal who----" + +"Old pal be hanged," Mayfield cried. "I'd have betrayed you fast +enough had it been to my interest to do so. I saw my game like a +flash. They are going to let you into the thing without a fight. But +not for very long, my boy, so you had better make the most of your +time. As Sir Vincent Dashwood you are all right, you can play ducks +and drakes with the estate if you please; in fact, you are going to +start with a mortgage of £50,000. That sum of money you will pay over +to me." + +"What for?" Dashwood asked uneasily. "Why should I do it?" + +"Call it what you like. Call it blackmail. But I'm going to have it +all the same." + + + + +CHAPTER XXXII. +MUST THIS THING BE? + + +Mr. George Dashwood staggered into the hall at the dower house with an +exaggeration of grief that filled Mary with contempt. The dethroned +head of the house seemed to have no thought for anything but himself. +His eyes were filled with tears, his voice was weak and tremulous with +selfish emotion. + +"This is dreadful," he moaned. "Really, I had expected something +better at your hands, Darnley. Still, I suppose you are merely here to +fulfil a promise to Ralph Dashwood. Most selfish of a man to keep in +the background all these years and then spring a mine on one like +this. And here am I, at my time of life, with nothing to fall back on, +not even a pension, for I commuted mine when I left the Service. +Still, that young fellow did not behave at all badly. Don't forget, my +dear that he offered us the free use of the Hall for the present, at +any rate. And he said that he was not a marrying man. Well, if you +play your cards properly, Mary----" + +Mary turned her face away and hid her hot cheeks in a great bowl of +dewy roses standing on the hall table. It was no use, she could not +keep the tears back any longer. This was the crowning humiliation of +an unspeakable day. For her father to deal her this blow in the +presence of the one man whose respect she valued so highly was the +refinement of cruelty. She rushed from the hall with choking words to +the effect that she must go and tell Lady Dashwood everything. + +"What's the matter with the girl now?" Dashwood asked peevishly. "Not +one word of sympathy has she uttered. Children have no feelings +nowadays, Darnley. I suppose she was angry about the new head of the +house. What better arrangement could be made? It would settle all the +difficulties at once, especially now Mayfield is out of the way. I +thought that our young friend put it very nicely." + +"Did you?" Ralph responded coldly. "I may not be a judge of these +matters, but I fail to see how you could accept that invitation. Of +course, a few days' residence at Dashwood to get your personal +belongings together would be another matter." + +"But what am I to do?" Dashwood asked feebly. "I am an old man, I have +been accustomed to the best of everything all my lifetime, and here I +am cut off from all my pleasures and not a penny to call my own. I +can't starve, my good fellow, and I couldn't stay here with Lady +Dashwood; she gets on my nerves terribly. What am I to do? Really, I +feel in absolute need of a cigar and glass of champagne. It is not my +habit to drink at this time of the day, but my condition calls for +it." + +Dashwood crept away with many a sigh and groan, and Ralph was left to +his own by no means pleasant thoughts. He had deliberately struck the +blow, and now that it had fallen, he was inclined to be dismayed at +the result. It was very hard upon this feeble old man, it was very +hard upon Mary, but Ralph steeled himself for the fray. Things were +going to be worse yet, the lily was going to pine upon the stem. +Still, it would never do now to become infirm of purpose, let the +consequences be ever so bad. Yet, if the worst came to the worst, it +would be easy to sweep away the whole network of intrigue and fraud by +the raising of a finger. It was necessary that Mary should learn her +lesson to the last letter. That the girl would fight hard against her +misfortunes Ralph did not need to be told. That she would refuse to +eat the bread of charity at another person's expense he was perfectly +sure. He was still debating the problem when Mary entered the hall +again. Her face was very white; there were dark rings under her blue +eyes, which were now swollen with tears. The girl flushed as she saw +the sympathy in Ralph's face. + +"Do not think me weak," she pleaded. "I am finding out that I am only +human after all. I have always despised tears, but the pain at my +heart was so great that tears brought the only cure for it. But I did +not come here to talk about myself. I have been telling Lady Dashwood +everything, and she has expressed a desire to see you. What have you +done with my father?" + +"He has gone to the dining-room. He declared that exhausted nature +required a stimulant in the form of champagne. I am afraid that you +will not find your father much use to you in the dark hours to come, +Mary." + +"I'm afraid not," Mary sighed, "but won't you go and see Lady +Dashwood? She is upstairs in her sitting-room. Of course, she is +upset; in fact, she has been saying all sorts of strange things which +are beyond my comprehension. Why has she taken such a strange fancy to +you, I wonder?" + +But Ralph did not appear to be listening. There was every prospect of +a painful interview before him. He passed up the stairs to the +pleasant room looking over the gardens which Lady Dashwood had made +her own. She signed for the door to be shut; as Ralph came towards +her, she advanced with both hands outstretched. + +"You will guess why I sent for you," she said. "Mary has been telling +me everything. So the man who calls himself Vincent Dashwood has made +a bold move at last." + +"He really didn't," Ralph smiled. "But had we not better sit down? My +dear grandmother, you are going to become a party to the conspiracy. +Let us no longer keep up the pretence of not knowing the relationship +in which we stand to each other." + +Lady Dashwood extended a shaking hand, and Ralph touched it with his +lips. + +"Perhaps I had better make a full confession," he said. "I am your +grandson. I knew that you would recognise me by the likeness to my +father. Old Slight did so at once and very nearly betrayed me. I had +forgotten Slight. I pledged him to secrecy, I had nobody to fear but +you, and it seemed to me that it was quite easy to keep out of your +way. But circumstances were too strong for me. Then I saw that you +were going to respect my wishes and I was safe. Forty years have gone +by since my father left the Hall, so that nobody was likely to guess +my identity." + +"Yes, but who is this Vincent Dashwood?" Lady Dashwood asked. "Oh, I +am not quite so foolish over that man as you may think. He came here +and declared himself to me. He had the most absolute documentary +evidence. He had many of the letters which I had written to your +father--letters to which I never received any reply. Old Slight +was more mistrustful, and submitted the claimant to a rigid +cross-examination. The man was not to be shaken in a single detail. We +were bound to accept his statements. But one proof was lacking, the +certificate of his parents' marriage. He desired to have his claim +kept quiet till that proof was forthcoming. This was after Mary and +her father came into possession. You can imagine my distress and +grief, seeing that I loved Mary so, and I hated the intruder in +proportion. He preyed upon my weakness, he seemed to read me like an +open book. If you had not appeared, he would have gone on blackmailing +me till the end. But when that man came face to face with you, I knew +that he was an impostor, that he had never seen my son Ralph. And now +he has decided to play the bold game, seeing that nothing more is to +be expected from me." + +"Not quite that," Ralph explained. "Fate played into my hands. The man +was more or less forced to disclose his identity. Let me tell you all +about the matchbox. . . . Now you see exactly how it is." + +"But this is monstrous," Lady Dashwood cried, "you have only to speak +and the wicked scheme collapses. You will not let this go on, Ralph?" + +"For the present, grandmother. For the present we are going to say +nothing. A little time before my father died he told me who I was. We +had lost our money, but that did not matter as my father was provided +for here. When I came to find out how the land lay, to my surprise I +discovered that the only woman I could ever care for was installed at +the Hall as mistress. I had no idea that this was going to happen when +I met Mary two years ago in Paris. Her father had not assumed the +family name then. And when I came face to face with Mary and held her +in my arms, I knew that the old love was stronger than ever. And here +was a solution. Those people were occupying my place, the place that +belonged by birth to me, Sir Ralph Dashwood. If I had proclaimed and +asked Mary to marry me, she would have consented. She would have +regarded it as her duty to do so. But that is not the marriage of my +dreams. Perhaps I am romantic: I want Mary to marry me, me, plain +Ralph Darnley, for love of me, and deem the family pride well lost for +a good man's affection. It is the living, breathing woman I want, not +the lovely mistress of that family who puts the pride of the Dashwoods +in front of everything else. Suffering and trouble and poverty shall +be her portion. She shall go out into the world and see what noble +souls are there who rise superior to fierce temptation though they +have no family pride to boast of. Then, when the scales have fallen +from Mary's eyes, and she sees as I do, then will I ask her to share +my life with me. My dream is to come back here with a bride who deems +love and pity and sympathy to be far above the steady sentiment that +says, 'I am a Dashwood, and the rest are as dirt under my feet.' You +see what I mean, don't you? And that is why I am asking you to help me +in the matter. Let this little imposter strut his passing hours on the +stage; let him be our puppet. I shall know how to punish him when the +time comes." + + + + +CHAPTER XXXIII. +A REBEL AGAINST FATE + + +Lady Dashwood smiled through her tears. She had eyes of affection for +this tall, handsome, earnest man who paced up and down the room now +with the burning words on his lips. He was moved to the very heart; it +seemed to him that his scheme was the only way. Lady Dashwood felt +that she could hesitate no longer. + +"You are very eloquent, Ralph," she said, "and whatever the faults of +your scheme may be, you are terribly in earnest. It is not for me to +stand in the way. God knows the family pride that I did so much to +foster has done harm enough. It drove your father away from home, it +came between me and my son and my husband, and rendered all the best +years of my life a blank and a desolation. Some day, when I have the +courage, I will tell you why your father left home, and the shameful +deceit that I put upon him. And all to save the family dignity! And +now Mary is as hard as I ever was. Still, the good that lies in that +girl of mine----" + +"I know it," Ralph cried. "Mary's is, in reality, a beautiful nature. +But the fires will go out one by one if the cinders are not cleared +away, so that by the time Mary comes to middle age she will be a cold +and distant woman with none to love her. This is why I have +practically turned her out of house and home. Her proper pride will +not permit her to be dependent upon anyone; you may offer her a home +here, but she will never accept it. She will elect to go, out into the +world and get her own living." + +"Which she is not the least fitted to do, Ralph." + +"Of course she isn't," Ralph exclaimed. "With all her courage and +pride and beauty, she has no equipment to battle with the world. And +yet it is the best thing that could happen to her. She will realise +her own helplessness, she will come to acknowledge that the +typewriting girls and the shop assistants have qualities and virtues +that she does not possess. Oh, those lovely blue eyes will come to see +at last, the mind come to learn that there is dignity in labour and +cheerfulness in the struggle that put family pride to shame. And then +Mary will be the bride for me, the noblest and sweetest mistress that +ever yet ruled at Dashwood. You may laugh at me, grandmother, but that +is my dream. Wherever Mary is, I shall not be far off, she will have a +friend in me." + +Lady Dashwood's tears were falling fast now. For the first time she +fully understood the breadth and beauty of Ralph's scheme. It seemed +hard that the misfortune should fall upon Mary, and yet it was all for +the best. Still, tradition and training are not to be put lightly +aside, and the idea of Mary taking her place with the working women of +the county was a vision that caused Lady Dashwood a pang. + +"Let us hope that everything will turn out right," she murmured. "I +will not betray your secret, Ralph; I am an old woman, and you are a +strong, masterful man. Still, I shall be bound to offer Mary a home +here, and I am afraid that I shall be glad if she accepts it." + +"She won't," Ralph said confidently, "she is too proud. Besides, after +what has happened, she could not stay so near to Dashwood Hall. +Remember, she has reigned there, she has looked for homage as +naturally as a queen. She will go away; probably she will try to +obtain some occupation in London. Anyway, I will see that she does not +starve. And when the lesson is learned and the clouds have cleared +away----" + +Ralph paused, there was a strange, tender thrill in his voice. Lady +Dashwood seemed to catch some of his enthusiasm, for a smile lighted +her face. + +"You are a clever lad, my dear," she said, "you are one of those who +compel Fate to work for them. Well, it shall be as you desire, so far +as I am concerned. And now let us go down and see what the others are +doing." + +Mary was nowhere to be seen, but Mr. Dashwood was in the library. He +seemed more calm and resigned now; he was reading a letter which +appeared to give him some satisfaction. + +"From--from Sir Vincent," he said, getting the name out with some +difficulty. "I suppose we must call the young fellow by his proper +title now. Still, he will of course, have to satisfy the family +solicitors first." + +"I have one or two further proofs that will induce the family +solicitors to maintain a policy of silence," Ralph said. "The best +thing to do is quietly to accept the new situation. People will talk +for a day or two, and then the incident will be forgotten." + +"I suppose so," Dashwood muttered. "Anyway, this is from--er--Sir +Vincent. I am bound to confess that it is not at all a bad letter. +Between ourselves, the fellow is by no means a gentleman. Still, +that's not quite his own fault, probably his mother was quite a common +sort of person. I beg your pardon, Lady Dashwood." + +"We need not go into that," Ralph said hastily. "Sir Vincent has +written to you----" + +"Really quite a nice letter. He has a suggestion to make. It appears +that he is by no means disposed to stay quietly here and live the life +of a country landlord. He does not care for sport to begin with, in +fact, he dislikes a rural life. And he seems to think that marriage +is--is not good enough. He therefore proposes that Mary and myself +should look upon Dashwood as our present home, that Mary should take +her place as mistress there. Really, this gets us out of a great +difficulty. I have no money beyond a pittance of a hundred or so a +year, and Mary has nothing whatever. As a sensible girl, she will +accept this offer." + +Ralph said nothing. It was not for him to persuade George Dashwood one +way or another. He rather despised the weak creature who had posed as +the head of the family. But Ralph could give a shrewd guess at Mary's +answer. + +Mary came back presently a little before tea-time. She had been over +at the Hall, she said, looking after certain belongings of her own. +The trace of tears was still on her face, but her small mouth had a +steely purpose. She lay back in her chair in the great hall, sipping +her tea, and looking out into the garden beyond. Ever and again there +came a yearning look in her eyes. She said nothing, and vouchsafed no +information, when a footman brought her a telegram presently. With a +guilty air her father placed Vincent Dashwood's letter in her hand. + +"I want you to read that, my dear," he said blandly. "To my mind, it +is an admirable letter and the sentiments in it are beyond question; +in fact, I may admit that I was quite touched by it. The fellow is +evidently a gentleman at heart. I want you to read the letter +carefully and send a reply on behalf of both of us." + +Dashwood spoke glibly enough, but he was obviously ill at ease. He +seemed to have lost all his dignity, his haggard face looked almost +mean as he glanced furtively at Mary as she read the letter through, +very slowly. Her face grew hard and bitter, though something like a +contemptuous smile flickered over her lips. + +"This is generosity indeed," she said. "So the beggars are to be +offered a home, with board and lodging and perhaps wages. I am to be +mistress of the house where for two years I have had my own way, in a +house where you have been master. We are to humble our pride and take +the place of the housekeeper and steward, to be polite to a man whom, +from the bottom of my heart, I loathe and despise. Oh, the situation +would be farcical but for the note of bitter tragedy in it. So you +want me to answer this letter. So far as I am concerned I answer +thus." + +With fierce energy Mary tore the letter across and then across again, +and flung the fragments amongst the flowers on the great hearthstone. + +"My dear," Dashwood protested, "really, Mary. Have you considered what +you are going to do, that you are practically penniless?" + +"There is always a home for Mary and her father here," Lady Dashwood +murmured. + +"That--that is very good of you," Dashwood stammered, "but I could not +think of putting you to so much inconvenience. Mary may do what she +pleases, but for my part I am going to accept the offer so kindly made +by the new--er--head of the family. I presume that Mary means to stay +here for the present, at any rate, and----" + +"No," Mary cried. She had risen to her feet, and was glaring from one +to the other of the little group with eyes filled with resolution. She +was very pale, her lips were trembling, but she contrived to keep her +voice steady. "No, I will not remain here, I will not stay anywhere to +eat the bread of charity. Dear Lady Dashwood, you will forgive me if I +seem to be harsh or ungrateful after all your loving kindness to me. +But I have been troubled and humiliated enough, and I could not stand +any more of it. My father can do as he chooses: if he likes to humble +himself in this way it is no business of mine. But I am going away to +London; everything has been arranged. The telegram I had just now +confirms it. And I have got my belongings together. My plans are made, +and it only remains for me to say goodbye." + +Lady Dashwood rose hastily to her feet. She felt vaguely alarmed and +agitated, now that matters had come to this pass. She gripped Mary by +the hand. + +"Going," she faltered, "going, and when and where? Oh, do nothing +hastily." + +"There has been nothing hasty about it," Mary said as she kissed the +speaker. "Believe me, I am not doing anything that is rash. And as to +the rest, I am going very soon indeed. In fact I expect to sleep in +London tonight." + + + + +CHAPTER XXXIV. +MISTRESS OF HERSELF + + +It was all working out now exactly as Ralph had hoped and wished for. +Never had he admired Mary quite so much as he did at that moment. And +yet his heart smote him as he realised that after all there was +something akin to harshness in his action. Still, the case would have +been very much the same had he declared his identity and proclaimed +the fact that he was the proper owner of Dashwood Hall. + +Mary would in that case have remained in much the same position, +though the situation would have perhaps lacked its present dramatic +features. Mary stood there with a proud look on her face; she was +ready to meet the world and conquer it single-handed. How many bright +strong young lives had set forth with the same cheerfulness and +failed! Still, it was a step in the right direction, Ralph thought. + +"Had you not better give the thing further consideration?" he said. +"In the ways of the world you are little better than a child. Of your +courage and resolution there is no doubt. But there are other +qualities needed to make a living today. You must have a good +knowledge of some business or profession." + +"I can paint," Mary said. "Many people have told me that I should have +made an artist if I had had to earn my own living." + +Ralph nodded grimly. He had seen several of the girl's drawings. There +was no necessity to point out the vast difference between the best +efforts of the amateur and the finished work of the professional, +tricks of the trade learned frequently after years of bitter +struggling. + +It seemed a pity to discourage Mary at the outset of her career. And +Ralph was not anxious for the girl's success. He turned the situation +over rapidly in his mind. + +"You can try," he said. "There is a friend of mine, the daughter of a +once famous general officer who gets her living by working for the +cheap illustrated papers. She has no great talent, but she manages to +get a living. If you like, I will write to her and ask her to----" + +"It will be too late," Mary cried, "I am going tonight. I could not +stay here a day longer after what has happened. The mere sight of the +old house brings the tears to my eyes and makes me feel weak and +irresolute. I have something like thirty pounds in money and a little +jewellery. And my maid has given me the address of a respectable woman +who lets lodgings. + +"Oh, I shall be happy enough when I am away from here and have plenty +of hard work to do. Only the other day I was reading a story about a +girl, like myself, who went to London and began to work for the +magazines. It made a different creature of her; for the first time in +her life she was really happy." + +"She made a large income from the start," Ralph smiled, "and presently +she had a great hit with an Academy picture. Subsequently she married +the editor--proprietor of a popular paper--and he bought the old home +for her?" + +"You have read the story?" Mary asked. + +"Indeed I haven't," Ralph replied. "There are so many stories like +that that I had no difficulty in imagining the plot. Oh, if you only +knew how different the real is from the ideal! Still, I would not +dissuade you from your ambition for a moment. It will do you all the +good in the world. But you shall not go alone." + +Mary glanced haughtily at the speaker. There was an air of command, a +suggestion of possession, about the speech that the girl resented. Who +was Ralph Darnley that he should adopt this tone towards her? And at +the same time Mary knew that he was the one friend she had, if she did +not count Lady Dashwood. + +It was a melancholy confession, but Mary had made no friends. For the +most part members of her own sex did not like her, she was too cold +and self-contained for them. She did not enter into their sentiments +and pleasures. It had not been the girl's own fault so much as the +fault of her environment. + +And now she was going out into the world alone with a few pounds in +her possession, and with not a soul to give her a helping hand. There +was something very pathetic about it, Ralph thought. She knew so very +little as to what lay before her. + +"I wish you would wait till tomorrow," he murmured. + +"No," Mary said with a proud toss of her head. "It is not the +slightest use trying to break my resolution. I tell you I could not +remain here, I could not stay even with Lady Dashwood, knowing that my +father was sponging on the good nature of the man at the Hall. It +seems a dreadful thing to me----" + +"That is a most improper observation to make," Dashwood said +peevishly. "A most impertinent remark to address to a father." + +"I am very sorry," Mary said penitently, "it seemed the only word to +use. And it does hurt me so dreadfully to see how coolly you have cast +your pride aside. If you will come with me, father, I will work for +both. We should at any rate have the consolation of knowing that we +have done nothing to sully the name of Dashwood." + +The girl spoke pleadingly, with a yearning tenderness in her voice +that Ralph had never heard before. He was rejoiced to see the lesson +of adversity working so soon. For his own part, he could not have +resisted that seductive invitation. + +"Certainly not," Dashwood replied. "Nothing of the kind. I have no +desire to make the acquaintance of what people call apartments. I went +to see a poor friend of mine in apartments once. I saw his dinner. +Good heavens! what a repulsive mess it was. Served up by a red-headed +maid-of-all-work, with a black smudge on her face. No, no, I prefer +the graceful hospitality of my friend--er--Sir Vincent Dashwood." + +Mary turned in the direction of the door as if the discussion were +closed. + +"I am disappointed," she said. "But there is nothing to be gained by +standing here talking over my determination. I am going as far as the +Hall to say goodbye to some of the old servants, and hope to catch the +7.05 train to London. As I said before, I know where to go when I +reach my journey's end." + +Mary passed out into the peaceful sunshine of the garden. Lady +Dashwood looked imploringly at Ralph, who smiled in reply. From the +bottom of his heart, he was feeling for the girl, but he did not +falter in his purpose. It was very brave of Mary, but at the same time +very pathetic. Ralph stole after the lonely figure; he found her +standing by the old sundial in the garden. Her fingers were tracing +idly over the quaint inscription on the stone. Ralph could see that +her eyes were filled with tears. + +"Is there anything I can do to help you?" he asked. + +"I'm afraid not," Mary whispered. "And you are the only friend I have, +besides Lady Dashwood. I have not the art of making friends: I never +had sympathy with the pastimes and pleasures of the ordinary girl of +my class; I did not feel lonely here, because it was so lovely a +place. Dashwood Hall was always sufficient for me. And now when I come +to leave it, it breaks my heart to go. You will laugh at me perhaps, +but I have a strange feeling as if I had the whole world to myself and +that there was nobody else in it. It is as if everybody had turned +away from me. There was even something that hurt me today in the way +that Mr. Mayfield let me know that I was free as far as he was +concerned. I dread the thought of living by myself in London, the idea +makes me tremble. I, who have been so cold and proud, will have to +approach people and ask favours at their hands. I hope you understand +me; it is dreadful when nobody understands me." + +Ralph made no reply for a moment, he was afraid to trust his own +voice. + +"You are a very woman," he said at length. "With your pride and your +coldness there are the same impulses and passions common to yourself +and the meanest of us. As to this pride of yours, I regard it as a +hateful thing. What is a Dashwood living on a fortune that none of you +have ever earned, compared with the man or woman who has risen +superior to circumstances and made an honoured name in the world? The +girl who goes out and gets her own living, or to support a widowed +mother, is far superior to you. But I say these things loving you with +my whole heart and soul and being, and hope that some day I shall call +you my wife. I want to see all that harshness and coldness of yours +cast to the wind, I want to see your face sweet in sympathy with poor +humanity. But you are not going the lonely way as you seem to imagine. +I am going to look after you; I will not be far away. For the present +my work is finished here, and there are powerful calls that take me to +London also in a day or two. You will let me see you, Mary; you will +let me bring you and my young artist friend together?" + +"I shall be glad indeed to see you," Mary cried, holding out her hand +with an impulse that she would have found it hard to account for. "Oh, +I am not so strong and self-reliant that I need nobody to confide in. +The more my mind dwells on the future, the more I seem to dread it. +And you have been so good and kind to me, I owe so much to you. I +begin to see that there are gentlemen in the world, though they boast +of no pedigree, and----" + +"Well, that is a good lesson learned," Ralph smiled. "Let me walk with +you as far as the Hall, for I have a telegram to send from the +village. And then, if you will allow me, I will return to the dower +house with you. There are one or two things that I have to say before +you go." + +Mary smiled through her tears; for a second her soul seemed to show in +her eyes. + + + + +CHAPTER XXXV. +A FRIEND IN NEED + + +It was a long telegram that Ralph despatched from the village, for he +only received a few pence out of the half-sovereign that he placed on +the counter. The operator sighed at the prodigious task before him. +Then Ralph went off in the direction of the Hall to wait for Mary in +the park. It was some time before she came; the children of the +villagers passed on their way from school, and presently Slight came +along, with something like a frown on his rosy, wrinkled little face. +He eyed Ralph with marked disfavour. + +"What's this about Miss Mary, Sir Ralph?" he asked. "Perhaps I +shouldn't have called you by that name. But Miss Mary has been up to +the Hall to say goodbye. She says she is going to London for good, and +that she is not coming back again. Going to try to get her own living, +or some such foolishness." + +"Your manner is not respectful, Slight," Ralph said coldly. + +"I can't help it, sir," Slight replied. "Really, I can't. I love Miss +Mary as if she had been a child of my own. I taught her to ride, I +taught her--but there! If you only knew what a heart of gold she has! +And now to go and soil those pretty hands with work. And you could +prevent it by holding up your little finger. Thank God, there is no +occasion for me to stay at the Hall, for I've saved enough for my old +age, though I don't deny that it will be a wrench. And tomorrow the +whole lot of us are going to hand in our resignation in a body." + +"Indeed, you are not going to do anything of the sort," Ralph said +sternly. "Don't let me hear any more of this folly. If you _do_ go, +you will not come back again when this present head of the family has +gone his way, which will be only a matter of a few months at the +outside. I look to you to stop the silly action, Slight. I have given +you my word before that this thing is not likely to be permanent. And +when you come to know everything, you will see how wisely I have acted +in the matter." + +Slight's indignation cooled as quickly as it had heated. He scratched +his white head in some perplexity. And the look he turned upon Ralph +was one of fatherly affection. + +"How like your father you do speak, sir," he said. "I suppose you must +have your own way as he used to. And if I hadn't been a wicked old +rascal these things would never have happened at all. My sin has found +me out sorely." + +"I am getting tired of this," Ralph said impatiently. "What sin are +you alluding to? And Lady Dashwood is always harping on the same +string. What wickedness were you two up to in the old days? What does +it mean?" + +"So her ladyship has not told you, sir?" Slight asked in a whisper. +"She never told you about the old Squire and your father's first wife +Maria Edgerton? She was the daughter of a farmer across the valley. +The most beautiful creature that I ever set eyes on. Well, well, to +think that you didn't know." + +"I don't know," Ralph said. "My father never spoke of his first wife. +And yet I always felt that his love for her was the passion of his +life. He was a good husband to my mother, but still--and now you are +going to tell me that story, Slight." + +"Begging your pardon, sir, I'm not going to do anything of the kind," +Slight said shortly. "I couldn't dream of doing anything of the kind +without her ladyship's permission. You ask her, and she will tell you +everything; indeed you have the right to know. And don't you worry +about the servants at the Hall, because they will do exactly as I tell +them. Make it as soon as you can, sir, for the old place doesn't seem +the same without the lovely face and the blue eyes of Miss Mary +looking after us. I'm an old man, and for over fifty years I've served +the Dashwoods faithfully, and it does seem rather hard to think that I +shall have to go on fawning and cringing to an impostor like the man +who calls himself Sir Vincent Dashwood. There won't be much of the +fine old cellar left if he stays here any time, I can tell you." + +"Patience, Slight," Ralph replied. "It is only a matter of months. +Here is Miss Mary coming down the avenue. I shall look after her, I +would not have one hair of her head injured. And some day perhaps, +Slight, if the fates are good to me, you will be serving me as you +served my grandfather, with Miss Mary as mistress of Dashwood by my +side. That is my desire. Slight, that is the one great ambition of my +life. And you can keep that secret with the rest." + +Ralph turned away and joined Mary as she came down the avenue. She +tried to smile, but her lips were white and unsteady. + +"That is finished," she said, with a brave attempt at cheerfulness. +"It is awful to think that I shall never see the dear old place again. +But I am not going to give way, I am going to show the world how a +Dashwood can behave when trouble comes." + +The girl drew up her head with an air of pride, she never seemed +quite to forget what the family required of her. It was in moments +like these that Ralph loved her least. It was this very foolish +self-consciousness that he desired to conquer. + +"It does not require a Dashwood to do that," he said. "Thousands of +people make these noble sacrifices every day, and take no credit to +themselves for it. When you get out into the world you will see +another kind of pride and courage and devotion that will put your +fetish to shame. If I were to say that this is the best thing that +could happen to you, you would laugh the idea to scorn. Nevertheless, +it is absolutely true. What money have you?" + +"Perhaps thirty pounds," Mary explained; "and certain articles of +jewelry. But I am not going to part with them like the girl in the +story did." + +Ralph felt by no means so sure of that, but he said nothing. He was +very silent till the dower house was reached, silent and a little +guilty too, for he it was who had brought this about. He was sending +Mary into the world to battle for her life alone. On the whole, he was +not sorry that the girl had refused Lady Dashwood's offer of a home; +_that_ was a specimen of the right kind of pride at any rate. And yet, +now that the hour of Mary's departure drew near, he dreaded the +parting. After all, the experiment was a cruel one, it was not yet too +late to save the situation. + +Lady Dashwood was crying now; the dogcart stood by the great stone +porch; Dashwood fidgeted about in a half-shamed kind of way, yet +frowning disapproval of the whole business. + +"Really, we are making a deal of fuss about nothing," he said. +"Anybody would think that Mary was being led away to instant +execution, instead of behaving in a way that makes me thoroughly +ashamed of her. It is my clear duty to exercise my parental authority. +As it is I am not going to do anything of the kind. Mary shall have +her lesson. She will very soon get tired of playing the part of the +unattached female. She will be back in a week." + +And this was Mary's farewell greeting as she drove away from the dower +house. She kept her face steady, and looked neither right nor left, +not that she could see anything, for her eyes were blinded with tears. +Behind the tears, one vision stood out bright and clear--the strong, +reliant face of Ralph Darnley, the warm pressure of whose grip still +tingled on Mary's fingers. It was good to know that she had one true +friend. + +The station was reached at last, and Mary was alone. She dismissed the +dogcart; she did not want the groom to see that she was going to +travel third class. It was rather a snobbish idea, and Mary despised +herself for it accordingly. The porter and the ticket officer looked +astonished as Mary asked the third-class fare to Victoria. How little +things seemed to remind her of what had been! + +"I am going third," she said firmly. "Will you please to see that my +two baskets are placed in the luggage van, Gibbons?" + +Gibbons touched his cap respectfully. It was the last outward +recognition of her social station that Mary was destined to receive +for some time to come. She had a vague idea of a carriage to herself, +where she could have an hour or so to regain her composure. She had +never had any difficulty in this way when travelling before. But +first-class passengers, liberal towards the guard, and third-class +trippers, are different things, as Mary speedily discovered. The train +was very full, so full that Mary was content at last to find herself +packed with nine other people in a stuffy compartment, including a +crying child and a surly workman, who smoked a foul pipe and spat +liberally on the floor. One window was closed for the benefit of the +fretting infant and the poisonous atmosphere of the place caused Mary +to turn faint and giddy. Long before she reached Victoria her head was +aching, her temples throbbing horribly. + +_Noblesse oblige!_ It was by no means a promising start, but Mary was +not going to take her hand from the plough yet. And that dreadful +journey could not last for ever. Victoria was reached at length, and +it was possible to breathe a little comparatively fresh air again. +Mary saw her two dress baskets placed on the platform and looked at +them in a helpless kind of manner. Hitherto a maid or a footman had +done all this kind of thing for her. An impatient porter wanted to +know whether the boxes were to go on a cab or whether they were to be +left in the cloak room. + +"Make up your mind, miss," he said rudely. "I can't stand here all +day." + +"A four-wheeler," Mary gasped. "I--I'm sorry, but my head aches so +dreadfully that I can't even think properly. Will you call a cab for +me?" + + + + +CHAPTER XXXVI. +CONNIE COLAM + + +The porter summoned a cab gruffly and the baskets were placed on top. +Mary's proffered coppers purchased a certain amount of civility so +that the porter asked the address. Mary gasped and stared in a blank +kind of way. She had absolutely forgotten the address. She recollected +now that she had left the card on the hall table at the dower house. +How she longed from the bottom of her heart to be back there again in +that cool shadow. But the grimy face of the cabman recalled her to her +senses. + +"I have stupidly left the address behind me," she said. "I remember +the street, and I daresay you can inquire when you get there. I am +very sorry----" + +"Miss Dashwood, I think," a cool, firm voice, with a subtle suggestion +of laughter in it, smote on Mary's ears. "So you have forgotten the +address. Not that it matters in the least, for you are coming with me. +You haven't taken your room?" + +"No," Mary stammered. She was utterly taken off her dignity by the +easy manner of the stranger. "I had the address given me, the address +of a respectable woman near the British Museum who had apartments to +let. Unfortunately, I left the paper behind me. But you will excuse me +if I say that I have not the pleasure----" + +"Oh, that is all right," the stranger said. "I'm a friend of Ralph +Darnley's. He sent me a very long telegram today to a certain extent +explaining the position of affairs, and asking me to meet you and +place my services at your disposal. Perhaps you have heard Ralph speak +of me, Connie Colam." + +"Only today," Mary said; "and then he did not allude to you by name. +Still, it is very kind of you to take all this trouble, especially for +a stranger like myself. How did you recognise me?" + +"There were what the Americans call 'pointers' in the telegram," Miss +Colam laughed. "But please get in or we shall have the cabman +abusive, and that is a consummation decidedly _not_ to be wished. +Please drive to 16, Keppel Terrace." + +The rickety vehicle got under way at length to Mary's great relief. +She laid her aching head back against the dirty cushions, wondering if +in the whole weary world there was another girl as miserable and +heartsick as she was. She raised her hot lids presently to the face of +her companion. The critical edge was already dulled, but in no +circumstances could Mary have disapproved of her companion. A very +dainty and refined face was Connie Colam's, with a pleasant frank +expression and a sensitive mouth. At the same time she did not lack in +certain suggestions of courage and resolution. + +"I hope you approve of me," she said demurely. + +"I like your face, if that is what you mean," Mary replied. "I shall +be able to thank you presently for all your spontaneous kindness. +Meanwhile, I have the most dreadful headache. After we have found my +rooms----" + +"Oh, your rooms are found already. For the present you are going to +stay with me. We are going to join forces. My late chum has gone to +Paris for a year, and you are going to occupy her bedroom. That is all +arranged." + +Mary murmured something that was intended for gratitude. She had +always professed a profound contempt for the helpless type of girl who +lets things drift, but she was letting herself drift now with her eyes +wide open. And though she was not prepared to admit it, she was almost +hysterically glad of the companionship and sympathy of the stranger. +As she stood on the platform a little time before, the horrible sense +of desolation had gripped her, the awful feeling of loneliness that +comes to the friendless in London. + +Yes, she was passionately glad of this companion. She did not even +desire to know whether Connie came of a good family or not, her one +idea now was to lie down and get rid of a wretched wearing headache. +Where was her pride of race and station now? Where were the force and +courage that rose above circumstances and fought physical weakness +under? Mary was content to leave everything to her companion--the +paying of the cabman, the arranging of her boxes, the setting out of +her various treasures. + +"Now you are going to lie down at once," Connie said. "I'll bathe your +head with Eau de Cologne, and as soon as I have settled you +comfortably, I'll make you a cup of tea. It is one of my great +accomplishments. I make my own tea from my own private supply. You lie +there and think of nothing." + +Mary closed her aching eyes; the touch of those deft kindly hands was +very soothing. The air was full of the faint scent, and gradually Mary +dropped into a sleep. It was an hour later before she opened her eyes +again; the stinging pain had gone. Connie stood by the side of the bed +with a cup of tea in her hand. + +"You are better," she cried. "I can see that in your eyes. And what +beautiful blue eyes they are. A little cold, perhaps, but they won't +be so cold when they have looked at the world through our spectacles. +Now drink your tea, and when you feel up to it you can come and look +at the sitting-room." + +Mary was almost herself again when she entered the sitting-room. It +was a fairly large room, with a dining-table in the centre and a large +table, littered with brushes and paints and panels, which stood in the +window looking on to the street. A score of sketches in black and +white faced Mary. So far as she could see, it was clever work, but not +the kind that appealed to her. The sketches partook of the light and +frivolous kind, some of them had more or less feeble jokes attached. + +"Are these yours?" Mary asked. "Are they studies of some kind?" + +"Not at all," Connie said cheerfully. "They are translations from the +Yankees. The originals are very clear, but a little too trans-Atlantic +for our stolid English taste. So I more or less copy them and my +editor adapts the jokes. I do six of them every week for _The +Wheezer_, which is a very useful commission for me." + +"But that sounds like piracy almost," Mary exclaimed. + +"Perhaps it is," Connie said in the same cheerful way. "It is pretty +easy work, and I get six shillings a drawing. That is an average of +thirty-six shillings a week. I know artists who have exhibited in the +Academy who are glad to accept such a commission. It is better than +working for the _Razzle Dazzle_ anyway." + +Mary shuddered. In a way the _Razzle Dazzle_ was familiar to her. She +had once caught one of the stable boys deep in that appalling mass of +bad printing and worse literature. + +"So you have actually worked for that paper?" she managed to say. + +"Oh, yes. Two shillings a drawing, and pay once a month. Do you know +that the _Razzle Dazzle_ is a property worth £10,000 a year? Their +serials are imported from America, and dressed up by hacks, who get +two shillings a column for their work. The _Wheezer_ is far better +than that. Besides, it is practice. Some day I hope to drop this kind +of thing and get regular commissions for the better-class weekly +papers. The illustrating of stories in the sixpenny magazines is the +goal of my ambition." + +All this was so frank and open that Mary could not resent the tone of +the speaker. And yet she paled at the degradation of the class of +labour. + +"It must be very trying work for a lady," she said. "I mean for a lady +born." + +"Perhaps it is," Connie said thoughtfully. "But it is not so trying as +your landlady in the room demanding her back rent, coupled with a +threat that if it is not paid tomorrow she will put your boxes into +the street. And that has happened to me more than once, though my +father was a general officer and my mother the daughter of an +archdeacon. I was quite alone in the world then; I will never +forget it. Try to fancy what it means for a young friendless girl +to be turned into the streets of London! I dream of it at night +sometimes. . . . That afternoon I walked into the office of the +_Razzle_ and told one of the assistant editors how I stood. It was +like dragging the words from me. And he gave me some work to do, and I +sat up all night over it. Soon after that I was carrying just one +solitary sovereign. But what a lot that little coin meant to me! And +that is why I have a tender spot in my heart for that unspeakable old +_Razzle_. But I don't know why I am worrying you with all these sordid +details." + +"Go on," Mary said in a hushed, awed voice. "You are opening up a new +world to me. You are making me feel ashamed of what I had hitherto +regarded as an exemplary life." + +"We'll go into that presently," Connie said. "I've got to go and see a +friend of mine who is ill. We take her work and try to sell it. If it +sells, well and good. If not, we say that it has gone, and make up the +money amongst us. It sounds wrong, but it is meant in the proper +spirit. I shan't be long. Ring the bell and ask the landlady to clear +away." + +Connie vanished from the room, apparently taking all the sunshine with +her, and Mary proceeded to ring the bell. She wondered vaguely how +many years it was since she had entered that house. She did not hear +the landlady address her at first. + +"Oh, I beg your pardon," she said. "Yes, I am going to stay here for +the present with Miss Colam. You are Mrs. Speed. . . . Where have I +seen you before? Your face is so very familiar to me. It brings back +recollections of my early childhood. You make me feel as if all this +has happened before." + +"I know the feeling, miss," the landlady said. "But I don't suppose +you have ever seen me. My very early days were spent on the estate of +Sir Ralph Dashwood, of Dashwood Hall. Maybe you have heard of it, +miss?" + + + + +CHAPTER XXXVII. +THE UNEXPECTED HAPPENS + + +Just for a moment Mary felt inclined to disclose her identity. It +warmed her heart and brought tears to her eyes to hear this kind of +voice from the past. The wound of separation was too recent for Mary +not to feel it keenly. The woman's face was so familiar, too; it +reminded the girl oddly of somebody else, somebody that she did not +like, but to whom for the moment she could not give a name. + +Then Mary's pride came back to her and the natural impulse to confide +in the woman was crushed down. + +"I suppose I made a mistake," she said. "After all, it is not an +uncommon thing to find chance likenesses to your friends in other +people. You must find London a great change after being brought up in +the country." + +The woman sighed deeply and a look of pain came into her eyes. It was +evident that she had felt the change far more cruelly than Mary had +imagined. The girl longed to ask further questions, but she restrained +her curiosity. Nor could Connie Colam throw any light on the subject +after she returned. She knew very little about Mrs. Speed, except that +she was a widow with a grown-up son, who had been a great trouble to +her. The son appeared occasionally, and Mrs. Speed always seemed to be +in deep distress afterwards. Mary was still debating the matter in her +mind at bedtime. After breakfast the following morning there were more +important matters to occupy her attention. + +"Now you are going to show me what you can do," Connie said +cheerfully. "I take it that you have come up here with a view to +getting your own living. If you have any money----" + +"You may get that idea out of your mind altogether," Mary smiled. "I +have a very few pounds to keep me going for the present, and a little +jewellery to fall back upon. I have not been used to this kind of +life, and I shall probably find it trying at first. But I am going to +succeed. We have lost our position socially and financially, and I +would not be beholden to those who have taken our place. I need not +say more than that." + +"That is just as you please," Connie said somewhat coldly. "I see you +are terribly proud and reserved, but you will grow out of that. And I +like your face. But please don't make up your mind that it is a very +easy thing for a girl to get her living in London. When you come to +know the inside of a pawnshop, and share the last sixpence with a +friend, you will be all the sweeter and better for it. Now show me +your work." + +Not without some pardonable pride, Mary displayed her drawings. There +were pretty landscapes in water colours, studies of groups of flowers +in oils, and the like, all the conventional kind of stuff that girls +produce at finishing schools under the eye of some discreet and clever +master. But they did not seem to impress Connie, who handled them with +some contempt. Mary's sensitive face flushed. + +"You do not seem to care for them," she said with a challenge in her +voice. + +"Oh, it isn't that," Connie replied. "It's the uselessness of the +things. I daresay that a good many of your friends have seriously +advised you take up art as a career." + +"Two or three people," Mary protested, "who are in a position to +judge." + +"Oh, I know all about that," Connie said without ceremony. "It was +just the same with me in the happy days. My dear Mary, that pretty, +pretty stuff of yours is all very well to bring you in flattery from +bazaar managers, but the milk-stool school of art is no good when you +get into the market. Painters, real painters, mind, not daubers like +us, find colour work dreadfully hard to sell. There isn't a dealer who +would give you five shillings for what you have there. Could you do +work like mine, for instance?" + +"I'm afraid that I should not care to attempt it," Mary said coldly. + +"There you go! Too vulgar for you, of course! You would never get the +price of your lodgings out of your class of work, believe me. I know, +because I tried it myself. But you will need to have your lesson like +the rest of us, and I will give you the names of a few of the most +likely dealers in London. You start off directly after breakfast and +go the round of them. I shan't be back to luncheon because I've got an +hour or two on one of the evening papers getting out sketches of a +fashion plate for a lady's page." + +Mary grasped eagerly at the suggestion. She wanted to prove that +Connie was wrong. With her head high and heart full of hope, she set +off presently. + +On the whole, it was a morning to be remembered. It was hot and +stuffy, and Mary was not accustomed to the blistering, trying heat of +London pavements. She was tired and worn out and her head ached +terribly by the time she got back. Nor was there any difference in the +weight and contents of her portfolio. + +Alas, for the blood of the Dashwoods! It was all the same to those +flinty-hearted dealers. Mary might have been the meanest beggar in +London for all the reception she met with. Struck by her distinguished +appearance and haughty beauty, a cringing shop assistant or proprietor +would probably ask her business, but what a change when the portfolio +was produced! It was the same in one shop after another, contemptuous +inspection, rude denial, a suggestion that the shopkeeper had more +rubbish already than he knew what to do with. The tears were at the +back of Mary's eyes now; unconsciously her voice grew soft and +pleading. One dealer, a little kinder than the rest, did suffer the +drawings to be laid out before him. + +"No use, my dear," he said with a sympathetic familiarity that, +strange to say, Mary could not bring herself to resent. "Bless your +soul, cheap lithographs and German reproductions have driven them out +of the market. If you offered me the lot at half-a-crown each I +couldn't take them. It'll save you a lot of trouble and disappointment +if you put the whole batch on the fire. Why should I buy that group of +flowers for five shillings when I can sell you a photogravure of +Watts's for half the money? Your work has been out of date since the +mid-Victorian period." + +It was the same everywhere, not so kindly expressed. At one o'clock +Mary returned to her lodgings utterly tired out and ready to cry in +the bitterness of her disappointment. How hard people were to one +another, she thought. It never occurred to her that this hardness had +been her own great besetting sin in the past. She was even inclined to +quarrel with Connie because the latter's prophecy had come so cruelly +true. + +But Connie was not in yet, and therefore Mary had to fight out her +trouble alone. Still, she had learned already a deeper and more +important lesson than she was aware of. She began to see that there +was a world beyond the narrow limit of the Dashwood horizon. There +were other men and women living in the world quite as worthy of +respect. Mary took her sketches and dropped them one by one slowly +into the empty grate. Then she put a match to them and watched them +burn away to ashes. It was a full and complete confession of failure, +and Mary felt all the better for it. She rang the bell for a glass of +milk to drink with her frugal meal that was already set out on the +table. + +Nobody came in reply to her ring. Mary was not aware that it was an +understood thing in a general way that nobody rang the bell except at +stated times such as just after breakfast and the like. In houses of +that class the lodgers were expected to be away all day more or less. +Otherwise, they were really obliged to look after themselves. After +the third ring Mary went downstairs to investigate. + +So far as she could judge the house was deserted. The dingy first +floor smelt horribly of cheap, stale, cigar smoke. The sordidness of +the whole thing struck Mary with peculiar and unpleasant force. It was +all so totally different to what she had been accustomed to. She +wondered where Mrs. Speed was to be found. + +Then voices came from the dining-room, voices raised in anger. A man +and a woman there were quarrelling violently. It seemed to Mary that +the man's voice was familiar to her, but she could not be quite +certain as yet. + +She made up her mind to go down into the basement--the dark, warm +basement that seemed to reek with the ghastly smells of bygone meals. +Mary wondered how people could live in an atmosphere like that. She +was standing in doubt at the head of the kitchen stairs when from the +dining-room she heard her own name. + +There was no mistaking the allusion to Dashwood. Quite naturally Mary +stood to listen. It was the man in the dining-room who was speaking. + +"I tell you I must have it," he said. "What reason have you got to be +fond of the name of Dashwood? It never brought us any good. If Ralph +Dashwood had not been a fool, and you had played your cards right, you +might be living at the dower house now, with a handsome income and a +staff of servants to wait upon you." + +The woman made some kind of reply that Mary could not quite catch, +though she knew by the choke in the voice that she was sobbing. The +man resumed. + +"I tell you I must have it," he said. "No use to tell me that you +haven't got the letters; for I have seen them in your possession. It's +a letter sent from Lady Dashwood to her son and the date is 9th +September, 1884. Now you make a note of that, please. If I don't have +it, I shall find myself in serious trouble. What game am I playing? +I'm playing for more money than you ever dreamed of." + +"Money!" the woman said bitterly, "that is always your cry. But it has +not prevented you from taking all mine. And I owe three quarters' +rent, which has to be paid tomorrow. If it isn't paid tomorrow, I +shall be sold up and turned into the street." + + + + +CHAPTER XXXVIII. +THE MYSTERY DEEPENS + + +No reason to tell Mary now that it was Mrs. Speed who was speaking. +She recognised the tired, faded voice by this time. But the other +voice was still more familiar. + +"That's bad," the man was saying, "why didn't you let me know that +things had got to this pass? I daresay I could have helped you." + +"No, you would have promised to," Mrs. Speed cried, "and disappointed +me at the last moment. All my savings have gone into your pocket; you +have wheedled everything out of me till I haven't so much as a penny +left. And now you come here for more of those letters! That you are up +to no good I feel certain. I know by your dress and style that you +have had the command of money. What are you doing there?" + +"Never you mind," the man said sulkily, "you'll know all in good time. +I'm playing for a big stake, and for once in a way it has turned up +trumps. Only; I want that particular letter. When I get the letter I +can answer certain questions. Give me the letter, and I'll pledge my +word that within a week you shall have all the money you require. Only +you are to ask no questions, and you are not to move away from here, +mind that!" + +"Oh, if I could get away from here!" Mrs. Speed sobbed. "Give me a +chance of earning my living, and that is all I ask for. I'll ask the +agent to give me another week, though I am afraid he won't do it. I've +put him off too often." + +It was perhaps wrong of Mary to stand listening, but some fascination +held her to the spot. She had a strong desire to see who the man with +the familiar voice was. + +"Then you are going to let me have the letter?" he said. + +"I suppose so," came the weary response. "Never a thing yet that you +made up your mind to have that you didn't coax out of me. But the +letters are hidden in a box at the top of the house, and they will +take some finding. Come again tomorrow at the same time, and I'll see +what I can do for you. But if I consulted my own inclination I should +go and see Lady Dashwood and tell her everything. I am sick of this +intrigue and mystery." + +The man said something in a soothing kind of voice, and then followed +a sound like a kiss. Then a match was struck, and the heavy, dense +atmosphere became impregnated with the smell of fresh tobacco, after +which the dining-room door opened and the man came into the hall. + +Mary walked swiftly back to the foot of the stairs. Without being +noticed now, she had a good view of the man's face. She started, but +managed to check the exclamation that rose to her lips. No wonder that +the voice had been familiar to her. For she was gazing at the dark, +sinister features of Sir Vincent Dashwood! + +It was only for a moment, and then the front door opened and the man +swaggered out. Without troubling any further about her milk, Mary +crept up the stairs again. She had plenty now to occupy her thoughts. +What was that man doing here, and what letter was it that he was so +anxious to obtain? And why had he so powerful an influence over Mrs. +Speed? It was open to Mary to ask the question, but she decided to do +nothing of the kind. + +After all, questions of this sort would be worse than useless. They +would only arouse the suspicion and perhaps incur the curiosity of +Mrs. Speed. Still, the whole thing was a most extraordinary +coincidence--not quite so much of a coincidence perhaps if Mary had +looked into the mind of Ralph Darnley? + +But as the girl could not do so, she had to figure out the problem as +best she could. She recalled vividly to mind now the strange +suggestions made by Lady Dashwood as to a great sin in the past with +which she was intimately connected. And here, according to Mrs. Speed, +the latter was an accomplice either before or after the fact. And why +did the man who came here in such urgent need of a certain letter +require that document, seeing that he had been accepted all around as +Sir Vincent Dashwood? + +Mary was still pondering the problem when Connie came back. The latter +was her own bright and cheerful self again, she had done a good +morning's work, and she had been paid for it to the extent of nearly a +sovereign. She was inclined to take a light view of life. She made no +allusion to the portfolio, for which Mary was grateful. + +"I am very hungry," she said. "How nice this pressed beef is, and the +lettuce, too! I have had better, but as things go in London they are +very good." + +Mary was silent. The beef was stringy and a little dry, the lettuce +wilted and yellow. In her mind's eye the girl could see the luncheon +table of the dower house at this particular moment; she could see the +dusky, cool room, with the breeze coming off the flowers in the +garden. She could see the snowy cloth and the crystal and the salad, +cool and refreshing in the great silver bowl. There would be +nectarines and peaches too from the ripe south walls of the garden. +The whole atmosphere of it flooded Mary's soul and brought the tears +to her eyes. + +"You are homesick," Connie said softly; "I used to be the same at one +time. And, of course, this luncheon is not at all nice, only I like to +pretend that it is. But you shall tell me all about yourself when you +come to know me better. And you shall also tell me what luck you had +with the portfolio this morning." + +"I had no luck at all," Mary said presently, "nothing but slights and +insults, rebuffs and bitter humiliations. I might have been a servant +girl for all the civility I received. And even one man, who seemed to +have a heart in his breast, told me to come home and burn the lot." + +"Wherefore you bounced out of the shop indignantly," Connie laughed. + +"Indeed I didn't, I was too utterly crushed and sorrowful for that. I +crept here and made a bonfire of my precious drawings, and I am ready +to ask your pardon for the cold way in which I accepted your good +advice this morning. There!" + +It was a great deal for Mary to say, a confession that she had failed, +that she was utterly wrong, the like of which she had never made +before. Her face was flushed now and her lips were all trembling. +Connie looked at her with undisguised admiration. + +"You have won a greater victory than you know," she said quietly. "It +is very hard for anyone brought up as you have been to admit a +failure. I had a letter from Mr. Darnley this morning in which he told +me a good deal about you. I hope the day will come when you will learn +to appreciate Ralph Darnley properly." + +"I think I do," Mary said, with the red mounting to her cheeks. "He is +a good man, and I owe him a great deal--my life itself on two +occasions. But he--he did not quite understand." + +"Didn't he?" Connie asked, her eyes dancing with mischief, "he is an +audacious man. He thinks that he is good enough for any girl. And so +he is, bless him! Oh, you will learn your lesson in time, my dear. And +when you do, you will be one of the luckiest girls in the world. To be +the wife of a man like that, ah!" + +"You think so highly of him as that?" Mary asked. + +"Ay, I do, indeed. Oh, how I could love that man if only he cared for +me! I could open my heart to him tomorrow, and thank God fasting for a +good man's love. Fancy the sweet rest and peacefulness of it all, +fancy laying down the weary struggle, the fearful dread of the needs +of the morrow with the assurance that you had that man to protect you! +But your eyes will be opened in time, you will come to see that love +is the best of all things." + +Connie had dropped her voice almost to a whisper and her dark eyes +were moist. Then she seemed to wipe away the tears with a smile and +was her sunny self again. + +"Please don't laugh at my sentimental manner," she said. "Let us talk +about you and your affairs. We may take it for granted that you have +abandoned all idea of making a fortune out of the milk-stool order of +art. You feel quite sure that you could make nothing of my kind of +work." + +"I should absolutely hate it," Mary shuddered. "Please don't be +offended." + +"Oh, I am not in the least offended. I felt just like you at first. +Did you ever try your hand at designing? One or two girls I know do +well at that." + +Mary didn't know; as a matter of fact, she had never tried her hand at +anything of the kind; but she was perfectly willing to try. A horrible +feeling of helplessness was growing upon her; she wondered what she +would have done if Fate and Ralph Darnley had not thrown Connie and +her together. For the next hour or two she tried her hand at designs +of various kinds, only to feel that she made but a poor hand at the +business. By tea-time her head was aching terribly and she dropped +into the armchair with a sigh of misery. + +"They are pretty bad," Connie said in her candid way; "we shall have +to wait a little longer before we find your proper vocation. For the +present you will have to fall back upon colouring cards--Christmas +cards, and post cards, and the like. That pretty chocolate-box type of +work of yours will do admirably for that class of thing. You shall do +a few specimen cards tomorrow, and I'll give you the address of a man +who will commission more. Only it is terribly hard, you will get paid +at the rate of half-a-crown a hundred." + +Mary's heart sank within her. Half-a-crown a hundred! At that rate it +would be impossible for her to make more than fifteen shillings a +week. She pointed out the fact to Connie, who agreed with a cheerful +nod. + +"You have worked it out pretty accurately," she said. "There are +hundreds of girls who do it, and the worst of the thing is that so +many girls can earn pocket-money that way who have no need to do +anything at all. It is the same with typewriting, the same with +everything. And, after all, it is quite possible to live on fifteen +shillings a week." + + + + +CHAPTER XXXIX. +HOMELESS + + +Connie refused to be drawn into further conversation for the present. +She was very busy touching up certain sketches which she informed Mary +were intended to illustrate the pages of a popular lady's novelette, +the published price of which was a halfpenny. They were dreadful +drawings, as Mary could see, grotesque exaggerations of the work of +George Du Maurier, impossibly tall females, with regular doll-like +features and long lashes, with men of the same type. Five drawings +went to each novelette, and the price paid was thirty shillings. + +"As a matter of fact they are not mine," Connie explained, as she put +the finishing touches to the figure of a severely classical duchess; +"they are the work of a friend. She has been very ill lately and her +work has fallen off in consequence. This lot would have been rejected +by the editor, only I happen to know his assistant, who suggested that +I should take them back and patch them up before they came under the +eagle eye of the proprietor. I can get the money for them this +evening, and tell Grace that the editor asked me to bring it along." + +"That does not seem quite--quite the right thing," Mary suggested. + +"Oh yes it does," Connie said bluntly. "Grace Cameron is a lady, and a +great friend of mine. This commission is all that she has to live on. +I happen to know that last night she spent her last two shillings on +the peculiar tonic medicine that is needful to her. Can't you imagine +the poor girl's state of mind if those drawings had been returned? +What would _you_ do if you were the Recording Angel?" + +Mary was silent. She had not looked at it in this light before. The +delicacy and tactfulness of it, the fine self-abnegation, appealed to +her strongly. With Connie, time was money, every hour she wasted +represented the loss of some necessary of life. And here she was +cheerfully spending her own golden minutes so that a poor invalid +should not lack the peace of mind necessary to her recovery. This was +a practical sermon for Mary, worked out to a womanly and logical +conclusion. If Ralph Darnley could have looked into Mary's mind now he +would have been pleased with the success of his experiment. + +"Oh, how good of you," she cried, "how womanly and sweet! You are +actually sacrificing yourself for the needs of others. I should never +have thought of it." + +"I shouldn't at one time," Connie admitted frankly, "but I was a +spoilt child in those days, and gave no heed to anybody but myself. +And when I came to London alone and penniless and friendless, it was +Grace Cameron who first held out a hand to me. And Grace is capable of +doing really good work. She is very different from me. If she could +only get into the country for a time and regain her strength she would +be heard of. But that is impossible!" + +"Why?" Mary asked. She was deeply interested now. "Why can't she?" + +"Because she helps to keep a widowed mother. One pound a week goes to +the poor old mother who is so proud of her girl's success. It is one +of the most pathetic and charming stories in the world. Mrs. Cameron +is the widow of a clergyman who left her very badly off, and Grace +came to London to gain a name with her brush. She did not succeed, but +she never let her mother know, she has always sent her something. And +that 'something' makes all the world to the dear old lady. You may +call it a deception if you like, but I call it one of the grandest +things I have ever heard of. And all the while Grace is hoping for the +name that does not come, the name that will enable her to go into the +country and turn her back upon those impossible duchesses for ever. +The story is known to a few of us, and we take it in turn now that +Grace is ill to do her work for her. I am going down to Grace's rooms +after supper, and you can come along with me if you like." + +"Oh, yes, yes," Mary cried, "I should love to go with you. You may +think that I am very foolish and ignorant, but you are opening up a +new world to me. Positively I did not know that there were such things +as these; even you are a new type to me. And here am I, who have been +living with my head in the clouds, regarding the universe as being +made up of people like the Dashwoods and others, whose privilege and +duty it is to serve them. How selfish!" + +"Well, you are not selfish now," Connie said. "You had the pluck to +turn out and get your own living rather than eat what you call the +bread of charity." + +"Pride," Mary exclaimed, "every bit of it pride. I was bitterly +wounded with a trick that Fortune had played upon me; in my arrogance, +I left home, though one kind heart bleeds for me. I only had my narrow +point of view. And I hate this kind of thing, I could cry aloud at the +sordidness of it. I can't endure it patiently as you do." + +Connie laughed unsteadily. A mist crept into her eyes. + +"It is because I have schooled myself," she said. "It is so weak to +complain. But there are times when I should like to die and make an +end of it all." + +Again Mary had nothing to say. She was learning to plumb the depths of +her own selfishness by comparison with others. She was beginning +dumbly to understand what Ralph Darnley must think of her. And yet he +had made no secret of his love and affection. She was strangely silent +as she walked along with Connie in the darkness of the evening. They +came at length to a mean little street leading off Tottenham Court +Road, and before a fairly respectable house there, Connie stopped. +Presently Mary found herself shaking hands with a tall, thin girl, who +gave her the strange impression that her new acquaintance was made of +some fragile china. Her clear skin was deadly pale, and the dark eyes +seemed to burn in the face like sombre flames. The slender frame was +racked now and then by distressing fits of coughing. + +Yet there was a subtle strength and power about the girl that appealed +to Mary. Here was a girl after her own heart, one who would struggle +to the end, and if she had to die she would fall in her tracks without +a murmur. + +Yet everything was against her. She had no natural advantages like +Mary. There was more shame for the latter. Hitherto she had lived +entirely for herself; her bounties had been dispensed with a haughty +hand. + +She had never dreamed of a kingdom inhabited by such brave, pure souls +as these. Despite the shabby little sitting-room it was impossible to +mistake Grace Cameron for anything but a lady. She had a smile of +sweet sympathy as Connie made the necessary introduction, and spoke of +Mary as another of the elect who had come into the arena. + +"You have my sympathy," the girl said with a pleasing smile, "I could +wish a woman foe of mine no harder fate. Anybody can see that you have +not been used to this kind of thing--you are too recently a commander +to know the bitterness of being commanded by the _canaille_ we +frequently have to deal with. We cannot all meet our misfortunes as +cheerfully as Connie does. But you will learn your lesson in time. +Tell me, have you heard anything as to those last drawings of mine?" + +"I have the money for them at any rate," Connie said without looking +at the speaker. "Mr. Scudamore was very kind." + +Grace Cameron drew a deep breath of relief, a wave of pink rose to her +cheeks. + +"They were dreadful," she whispered. "But I was so ill on Monday and +Tuesday that I had to drag myself to the work. My hand shakes terribly +still, and I have some kind of a commission that I must finish +tomorrow. It is a design for the cover of a new penny weekly. I have +the scheme sketched out, but I am afraid that I shall not be able to +finish it. And I know that my mother is in great need of a few pounds. +How hard it is to be like this." + +The last few words rang out passionately. Connie patted the speaker's +shoulder. + +"Don't despair," she said, "give me the rough design and I will put in +the colour. Take at least five hours! Well, what of that. Give us some +supper presently--it matters little what time we get home in the +morning. Mrs. Grundy has no terrors for the true and tried children of +Bohemia." + +Connie's cheerfulness seemed to be unflagging and unfailing. She had +no great aptitude for the brush, but she had the great gift of +patience. The hours wore on, supper came and went, and presently a +clock somewhere struck the hour of two. Then at last Connie held up +the coloured design in triumph. + +"There," she cried, "I guess they will be satisfied with that. I wish +I had some of your boldness and originality, Gracie. I think we've +done it this time. What a shame it is that good stuff should go for so +little money! And now I really must be off. Mary looks tired to death. +I'll post this for you, if you like." + +Mary was tired and worn out, but she was not thinking of herself as +she dragged along by Connie's side. She had learned a great deal in +the last four-and-twenty hours. + +In a vague, disturbed way she felt ashamed of herself. She did not +notice the little cry that broke from Connie as they stood before the +house where their rooms were. The place was all in pitch darkness, a +litter of straw lay before the door. As Connie applied her latchkey +and pushed back the door the house sounded curiously hollow. Footfalls +clanked on a bare floor. Connie struck a match and held it aloft. + +"The house is empty!" she cried, "the people have gone. These things +happen with the struggling poor when they are threatened over their +rent. Let us go and see if they have packed our belongings in the +confusion." + +The little sitting-room was empty of everything, the bedroom the same; +nothing was left. + +"My writing-case!" Mary cried, "my purse, too, in my box. And in the +case--my jewels. Connie, Connie, what will become of us?" + + + + +CHAPTER XL. +IN PERIL + + +Connie was the first to recover herself. She knew far better than Mary +how great the danger was, how great the need for coolness and +judgment. And she had been in dire straits like this before. She held +the flaring match above her head and looked round the deserted room. +On the mantelpiece stood a fragment of candle stuck in the neck of a +bottle, and this Connie proceeded to light. + +"Now we can go over the house and see if they have placed our +belongings anywhere," she said cheerfully. "I have been in one or two +strange predicaments, but never anything quite so bad as this. Still, +I am sure that Mrs. Speed is an honest woman. It is more than likely +that she has placed our goods and chattels somewhere." + +But though the house was searched from top to bottom, nothing could be +found. Mary did not give way, though she was tired out and weary, and +sinking for the need of food. She had not yet lost her robust country +appetite; she had not brought herself down to exist on weak tea and +bread and butter, as Connie did. + +"It is downright cruel," she cried. "That woman knew that we should +come back, that you are in the habit of entering the house with a +latch key. And to go off with all our wardrobe like this; to take +everything. What are we to do?" + +"It must have been some terrible mistake," Connie said. As usual, she +seemed loth to judge anybody harshly. "The poor woman could not pay +her rent. No doubt the landlord had threatened to come in tomorrow and +take everything. And Mrs. Speed has a young family. She probably went +to the agent and asked for time----" + +"Oh, I know she did," Mary cried, recollection suddenly coming back to +her. "As it happens, I overheard the conversation. There was some man +here, a man I know something about, though we need not go into that. +And Mrs. Speed seemed to be terribly short of money. I heard her say +what was going to happen. Oh, Connie, my head is so confused that I +cannot think, I shall wake up presently and find myself at the dear +old dower house again. I did not dream that there were things like +this in the world; I did not think it possible." + +"There are worse things," Connie said sadly. "It is very +terrible--very indeed; but what can poor people do? And yet there are +others who waste thousands on their dress and amusement and pleasures, +little dreaming of the sort of hell that forms half the life of the +poor. Mrs. Speed sees that her household is in danger--her furniture +is the one thing that stands between herself and the workhouse. The +poor creature is so distressed that she has no thought for anybody +else--she forgets our existence. She finds another house to go to, and +she hires a man to come late at night and remove the things. I +understand that there is a contractor who holds himself ready for this +kind of thing. He employs very rapid workmen, and he uses vans with no +name on the cover. The thing is easily done in this stony-hearted +town, where your next door neighbour is a matter of indifference to +you. + +"Mrs. Speed is in the new house waiting to receive her goods. In the +haste and confusion everything is packed, sent away. I have no doubt +we shall get our belongings back again." + +"And meanwhile, we have lost everything," Mary protested. "We have +exactly what we stand up in. And every penny of my money, to say +nothing of my jewels, has gone. We ought to go straight to the +police." + +"No," Connie said firmly. "A year or two ago I should have done so +without hesitation, but not now. Ah, my dear I know how the poor live, +how fierce are their temptations. When the great Day of Judgment comes +God will be tender to His poor." + +The fierce flame of Mary's anger died away, and a feeling of shame +succeeded it. She was forced to recognise the many ways in which her +companion was the superior of herself. Should she ever grow soft and +sympathetic like that? Would her misfortunes render her more lenient +to the failings of others? And yet Connie had said that she had been +at one time the child of hard selfishness. + +"Perhaps you are right," Mary admitted. "But what are we going to do? +Where are we going to sleep tonight? And have you any money?" + +"Two shillings," Connie replied. "Two shillings in my pocket, more by +accident than anything else. My bank has vanished with my tin box. We +can't go back to Grace's lodgings at this time of night. But that is +not the worst." + +Mary's heart sank within her. Could there be any worse than this? + +"It is that very question of lodgings," Connie explained. "Nobody will +take us without belongings. They would regard us as a pair of +swindlers." + +"Swindlers!" Mary's face flamed at the new word. The late mistress of +Dashwood Hall regarded by a common Cockney landlady as a swindler! + +"It seems so cold, so hard-hearted," she protested. "And just now you +were speaking of the virtues of the poor, their kindness to each +other, and----" + +"My dear Mary, there is no kindness like it in the world, because +generally it is the very essence of self-sacrifice. But there is +another side to the matter. They _have_ to be careful, they are +compelled to look coldly on outsiders, they--but why am I preaching +social sermons to you at this time of night? We must make the best of +it till morning and then try to find Mrs. Speed." + +It seemed a hopeless kind of business to Mary. Something like looking +for a needle in the proverbial truss of hay. But the girl's wits were +sharpened now by this sudden contact with adversity. She began to see +a way. + +"It may be possible to find Mrs. Speed," she said. "It will be weary +work, but the thing has to be done. The man I was speaking about, the +man who was here yesterday--he is calling here tomorrow for a certain +letter. I could force him to . . . but that shall be my business. The +question is where shall we sleep? Not on these bare boards. And I +shall drop if I don't have something to eat." + +The dawn was breaking in through the shutterless windows now--the red +dawn of the summer day that gives London an added touch of beauty. It +would be broad daylight before long. The presence of the light gave +Mary a new courage. + +"It is useless to think of sleeping anywhere," Connie said. Her face +was pale and downcast, all the colour had gone out of her eyes. Mary +had not before seen her friend on the verge of despondency, and the +knowledge spurred her to new efforts. + +"Let us go for a walk before the place gets hot and stuffy and full of +struggling humanity. A London crowd always makes me so sad--it is +awful to think that every man and woman streaming past you is engaged +in the struggle for bread." + +"Come out of this," Mary said hoarsely. "Let us feel the sunshine. +This is heart-breaking, nerve-destroying work, but I am not sorry that +I came. Let us go and watch the sun rise, and if there is any place +where we can get something to eat----" + +There was, at the end of the Embankment, a coffee stall, the +leaden-eyed proprietor of which regarded the girls without emotion. +He had served all classes of customers in his time, and these +well-dressed girls, with an unmistakable air of class about them, +inspired him with no curiosity. He filled up the thick cups of muddy +coffee and cut the stodgy bread and the debatable butter. It was +hideous stuff altogether, but Mary was astonished to find with what +zest she was devouring it. A flashy woman, terrible in her cheap +finery, staggered up and demanded tea. A man, unmistakably a +gentleman, with a well-cut suit of clothes, partook of cocoa and a +slice of bread. His coat collar was turned up, and Mary surmised that +this was to hide the absence of a shirt. The girl was learning her +lesson with terrible swiftness. Another man, with a bag in his hand, +hurried up and breathlessly asked for tea. His face was white and pink +by turns, he looked about him a furtive kind of way. From behind the +barrow a powerful figure shot out and grabbed at the shoulder of the +man with the bag. The latter showed fight for a moment, then his white +face broke into a profuse shower of moisture. + +"Better come quietly," the powerful man said. "You can have a cab if +you like, though it does not matter much at this time of day. You've +given me a long chase." + +The two vanished in the direction of the Strand, where now the houses +and spires were all golden in the purple mists. Mary shuddered. + +"What does that mean?" she asked. "Was--was he some criminal?" + +"That is it," Connie explained quietly. "And the other man was a +detective. Oh, it is a horrible place, this London, if you come to see +it from the underside. I long for millions of money to turn this city +into a paradise. You think I am always cheerful and careless, but my +two years here have left a mark upon me that I will never get rid of. +Let us walk along the Embankment as far as Westminster, and then +strike West for the Park. I feel a perfect longing for flowers and +green grass. We will go through Park Lane, and speculate as to what +the millionaires there are dreaming about--the people who have a +hundred times as much as they can spend, and are yet greedy for more. +Oh, my dear, if you only knew how tired I am, so utterly worn out." + +Connie sat down on a seat on the Embankment and burst into tears. + + + + +CHAPTER XLI. +THE LESSON OF ADVERSITY + + +Hitherto Mary had been entirely dependent upon her newly-found friend. +She had come up to London with the proud intention of making her own +living, a Dashwood ready to defy Fate and overcome it from the first +onset. On the contrary, she had been a living example of the weakness +of the unemotional when confronted with the problem of existence. If +it had not been for Connie, she shuddered to think of what might have +become of her by this time. But there was stirring within her now +those high attributes and noble qualities that Ralph Darnley had +discovered behind the armour of selfishness and ice of pride. It +behooved her to act now that Connie had failed. + +That poor Connie's breakdown was only temporary made very little +difference. Mary must become the head of the expedition now. She +placed her arm around the other girl's waist and kissed her tenderly. +Mary had never done such a thing in her life before. She would have +found it physically impossible. And here it seemed the most natural +thing in the world. + +"You must not give way," she whispered. "Dear Connie, you can't tell +how much I admire and respect you. We are going to be friends as long +as we both live. You have taught me more in the last two days than I +ever learned before." + +"I shall be better presently," Connie sobbed. "I am so tired. Let me +put my head on your shoulder and rest a little. Only don't let me go +to sleep, as we shall have some horrid policeman making us move on, +and I have not come quite to _that_." + +The weary head fell back on Mary's shoulder and the weary eyes closed. +Five minutes later, and Connie had passed into the land of dreams. It +was not much past three yet, and the Embankment was very quiet, save +for the passing of the wretched wanderers, who seem to find nowhere +rest for the soles of their feet. There were evil-looking creatures, +both men and women, slouching along and hideous faces once human +leered at Mary, but the daylight seemed to take all the audacity out +of this. There were others, too, who had fairer faces, and who turned +aside with proper respect as they saw the sleeping girl with her head +on Mary's shoulder. A policeman came along like the head of the +universe and paused before the seat. + +"This isn't quite the thing," he said. "Hope there's nothing wrong, +miss?" + +The man was gruff, but utterly sympathetic. Mary took heart of grace. +Fancy her the heiress of the Dashwoods, explaining the sordid +situation to a London policeman! + +"We have had a great misfortune," she said. "When we got back to our +lodgings tonight our landlady had vanished, taking all her furniture +along. And everything of ours had vanished also; we could do nothing +till today. And my friend is so worn out that she has fallen asleep, +as you see." + +The red-faced policeman whistled. He needed nobody to tell him that he +was face to face with a lady of the real West End type. He was a +policeman of experience. That Mary was telling the truth he could see +from the look in her eyes. + +"Very sorry, miss," he said. "Don't disturb the other lady. I'll keep +an eye on you till I go off my beat at seven o'clock." + +The man touched his helmet and passed silently on. The incident +touched Mary and brought the tears to her eyes. She was surprised to +find how the once unwonted tears rose to her lids. She did not realise +perhaps how steadily the ice was melting from around her heart. But +she did realise what a great palpitating thing the life of the town +was, its cruelties and its misfortunes, and the tender touches that +spring from the impulses of a common humanity. Mary was learning her +lesson. + +She sat there till the sun glinted on the bosom of the Thames; she saw +the barges gliding down with the tide; she watched the first rush of +cabs from the stations. And ever and anon the cool vision of Dashwood +rose up before her. If she were at home now she would be out in the +garden gathering roses to decorate the huge bowls in the drawing-room. +She wondered if the Blois was out under her window, and whether Clegg, +the head gardener, had looked after the new phloxes properly. + +She could see it all now as it would be in the dewy sunlight. Well, if +the worst came to the worst, she could go back to the dower house +again, but she would not go alone. Connie should accompany her and +Grace Cameron. It would be a glorious thing to take the pallid, +hollow-eyed painter down there, and send her back to her beloved work +with an elastic step and the light of health glowing in her brown, +ambitious eyes. Mary was beginning to understand what wealth could do +and what glorious privileges it possessed. She began to understand +what Ralph Darnley had been thinking about her. Well, the time would +come when Ralph should learn his mistake. All these things, and more, +Mary dreamed of as she sat patiently there with Connie's head on her +shoulder. The latter stirred presently, and opened her eyes to the +glory of the day. It was past seven now, and the greatest city in the +world was awake to the struggle for existence. It was some little time +before Connie's mind was clear enough to grasp the situation. + +"I have been asleep for three hours," she exclaimed. "What an +intolerable burden you must have found me. Why didn't you wake me?" + +"Perhaps I have been dreaming myself," Mary smiled. "Anyway, I did not +seem to notice. And there was a policeman who was very kind. I was +watching the day break over the river, and it took me back to the old +home. It seemed to me, Connie, that I had not been as frank with you +as I might. Let me tell you why I left home. It will be a new +experience for me to have a girl friend to love and confide in." + +They sat for an hour longer, and Mary told her story. She was +surprised at the ease and fluency with which the narrative came from +her. And she was surprised, too, to find how much better she felt for +the telling. + +"Oh, well, nothing can deprive us of the pleasures of memory," Connie +said. "I like to dream of the old home sometimes, though there is a +deal of pain with the joy in it. And you have the consolation of +knowing that you can go back when you like, and find a real loving +welcome waiting you in the bargain." + +"I shall never really go back under present conditions," Mary said. +"But I see now that this is no reason why I should not visit my dear +Lady sometimes. Wouldn't it be a glorious thing to have a nice holiday +down there! To take you with me for a fortnight, to take Grace also, +and leave her with Lady Dashwood till she was quite herself again. Now +I know that you have been scheming and planning for a long time to get +a real chance for Grace. If I told Lady Dashwood she would never +hesitate for a moment--it would be as good as done. That is the plan I +have in my mind." + +Connie caught at Mary and, heedless of passers-by, kissed her +affectionately. + +"An angel unawares," she said with an unsteady laugh. "That is what +you are. Oh, my dear, you must not put these temptations in my way, +you must not try to make me discontented with my lot. For two years I +have not seen a green field, or caught a sight of the sea. It is two +years since I was so extravagant as to go to Hastings for the day. I +took my lunch and passed the whole afternoon in the glen at Fairlight. + +"I met a doctor there, he was just recovering from a dangerous +illness--such a nice fellow! And it seemed the most natural thing in +the world that we should tell our story to one another. I wonder if I +shall see that young doctor again?" + +"I wonder," Mary laughed. "But what are we going to do now?" + +"Have a proper breakfast at a place I know of," Connie said. "Then we +are going to sit on the grass in the Park, and you will have a sleep +whilst I look after you. Grace does not get up till about mid-day, so +we won't bother her just yet. Perhaps she will be able to find us +another lodging. My dear Mary, your white face is quite a reproach to +me. Let us go to breakfast at once." + +The breakfast was plain, but good, and eaten in a clean room, which +was something. Then the two wandered into the Park, given over at this +hour to nursemaids and children, and under the shade of a tree Mary +lay down and closed her weary eyes. The warmth was soothing. Mary +found herself wondering what they would have done had it been a wet +day. . . . Her mind began to wander now . . . she was back again in +the garden at Dashwood, she was rambling the summer woods with the +breeze in the old elms overhead. Then gradually the world seemed to +grow dark, and she slept. + +The sun was high overhead when she came to herself again. She felt +fresh and vigorous now, ready for anything. Then the humorous side of +the thing struck her and she laughed. The idea of a Dashwood sleeping +out all night like a common tramp! And yet Mary did not quite realise +how near the most prosperous of us is to the workhouse. A trick of +Fate, misfortunes over money matters, a long illness, and the thing is +done. There are thousands of such instances every year. + +"Do you feel equal to moving yet?" Connie asked. + + +[Illustration: "Under the shade of a tree Mary laid down and closed +her weary eyes." (Page 272.)] + + +"My dear, I feel equal to anything." Mary cried. "My courage has come +back to me. And now what do you propose to do next?" + +"The next thing is to call on Grace and tell her of our misfortunes. +We must not repeat last night's experiment if we can help it. Besides, +there are those drawings for the _Wheezer_ which are promised for +tomorrow. They were all finished and lying on my table when the +catastrophe happened. I must get them back today." + + + + +CHAPTER XLII. +THE COURAGE OF DESPAIR + + +Grace Cameron was making a pretence of breakfast when Mary and Connie +arrived. Her pallid face was more flushed than usual, her cough very +distressing. But she had no thought for herself directly the story +came to be told. + +"You poor dears!" she cried. "What a cruel misfortune! To have lost +everything in this way is doubly terrible. Oh, if it were only +possible for you to stay here! The house is almost full up, and my +landlady is independent accordingly. I am expecting every day that she +will ask me to go--the breakfast in bed and my late rising give a +great deal of trouble. There seems to be nothing that I can do." + +"Oh, yes, there is," Connie said cheerfully. "You can help us +wonderfully. For the moment we are absolutely penniless. Our idea is +to take a bed sitting-room together, for a few shillings a week, and +restore confidence, in lieu of personal belongings, by paying the rent +in advance. I want you to lend me a sovereign for about a week." + +"But my dear, I haven't got it," Grace said in deep distress. "I only +kept a few shillings out of the money you gave me yesterday, the rest +I posted to my mother not an hour ago. If I had only known! And I +suppose you can't possibly draw any more money from the _Wheezer_ till +the end of the week!" + +"I might have done so," Connie said. "I had the week's drawings +finished. They must be in tomorrow or I shall certainly do no more +work in that quarter. They were all lying ready on my table when I +came round here last night." + +"Oh, this is dreadful," Grace cried, with the tears in her eyes. "If +you had not returned here then, this dreadful thing would never have +happened. To think that your kindness and goodness to me should have +produced a result like this! Oh, Connie, what are you going to do, +what can you do?" + +"Oh, please don't," Connie said unsteadily. "It was no fault of yours. +I daresay we shall manage to muddle through some way or another. It is +a great pity that so many of our circle are so hard up just at +present." + +"And Miss Dashwood is as badly off?" Grace asked. + +"Please don't call me Miss Dashwood," Mary said. "It makes me feel as +if I were not one of you. Yes, I am in the same boat. Still, I dare +say----" + +Mary's voice trailed off into a whisper. An idea had come to her. She +was quite ready to humble her pride now; she no longer shrank from the +idea with a pain that was almost physical. If the worst came to the +worst, she could telegraph to Lady Dashwood and ask for a few pounds +by wire. And yet that seemed a weak thing to do, seeing that she had +left the dower house so short a time before, determined to make her +way in the world. But that would have to be done before nightfall, +unless---- + +Unless! There was yet another way out of it. The recollection of the +dramatic scene between the so-called Sir Vincent Dashwood and Mrs. +Speed came with vivid force to Mary. The man had come for some +important letter. What the letter was and what it had to do with the +Dashwood succession mattered nothing at that moment. At any rate the +letter was needed, and Vincent Dashwood had promised to come back for +it. And Mary did not fail to remember now what Mrs. Speed had had to +say about the trouble she was in over her rent. That trouble had +culminated with disastrous swiftness, and to save her furniture the +woman had vanished in the night. + +With a mind full of her own troubles, she had probably given no heed +to Vincent Dashwood. But it was necessary to his success that he +should find her. + +No doubt he was hanging about now somewhere in the locality of Keppel +Terrace waiting for a sign. And here was the desperate chance that +Mary needed. + +She, too, would spend the next few hours in the neighbourhood of +Keppel Terrace. Her mind was made up and she resolved to act without +delay. She rose to her feet with a smile and made her way towards the +door. + +"Where are you going?" Connie asked. + +"I have a little idea of my own," Mary said. "I can't tell you +everything, because it is in a way mixed up with my private affairs. +But I think that I shall be able to get everything back before we +sleep tonight. I am not going to be a helpless burden on you two poor +dear things. I want you to feel that you have been entertaining the +proverbial angel unawares. I may not be back till late, but you need +not be anxious. After my experience of last night, I am not afraid of +anything." + +"Let her go," Grace said, as Connie would have detained the speaker. +"She is anxious to do something, and I feel that she will succeed." + +Mary went down stairs with a firm, steady tread. She was not in the +least afraid now. Whatever she lacked, there was no question of her +courage. And she was going off now on an errand of mercy and relief. +The knowledge thrilled her, she was conscious of emotions and feelings +now that she had never felt before. The warm hot blood was coursing +through her veins; there was a gladness about her heart that made her +feel strangely young and buoyant. She would have liked to meet Ralph +Darnley now and tell him many things that had not occurred to her +before. She was ashamed of the way that she had treated that man. And +he was good enough for her; as Connie had said, he was good enough for +any girl. What did birth matter, what did anything matter, so long as +the man was good and true and the woman sweet and tender? It came to +Mary with a crushing force that the Dashwood pride was a poor and +feeble thing by comparison. + +She was still turning these new sensations over in her mind when she +arrived at Keppel Terrace. The empty house seemed to look at her with +blank, mocking eyes. For a long time she walked up and down before the +house. An hour, two hours, passed before Mary noted anything to +attract her attention. Then she thrilled as she saw Vincent Dashwood +come swaggering along the terrace. He paused at the step of No. 16, +and looked up at the house. Mary could see his gesture of passion. As +he stood there, evidently nonplussed by his discovery, a boy came up +to him and handed him a card, which he read and then tore up. + +Greatly daring, Mary came along the pathway. She pulled her veil down +and pretended to ring the bell at No. 17. Her back was to Dashwood; +she calculated that he would not notice her, that she would be the +last person in the world he was likely to meet. But Mary was trembling +from head to foot. + +"All right," she heard Dashwood say. "I suppose the lady told you what +I was like?" + +"That's it sir," the boy said. "The lady knew as you would come. She +gave me a shilling for this job. I've been hanging about here since +dinner time." + +"Well, here's another shilling for you," Dashwood said in great good +humour. "Tell the lady that you delivered the card properly and that +I'll call after dark. As it happens, I know the address on the card +you gave me." + +The boy went whistling off down the road and Dashwood swaggered away. +Here was a piece of luck that Mary had not expected. She had made up +her mind to loiter about the street till she saw Dashwood, provided +that he had not come and gone already. But she knew perfectly well +that Dashwood and early hours did not go together, and upon that fact +she had acted. Her idea was to follow the man, knowing that sooner or +later he was certain to look for Mrs. Speed. But here was a piece of +real good fortune on which she had not reckoned at all. Dashwood had +read the address, and then, with his usual carelessness, had torn up +the card. Mary was off the doorstep as soon as it was safe, and the +pieces of torn card were in her hand. She had only to put them +together and the address was here. + +This was splendid! Here was a way of proving to Connie and Grace +Cameron that she was a friend to be relied upon. Mary's heart warmed +at the idea of it. Her fingers trembled as she pieced the fragments of +the card together and read the address. It was clearly set out in a +neat handwriting. + +No. 24 Hamerton Gardens, N.W.--surely the new house was some distance +away. Mary had yet to learn that these midnight flittings necessitated +a change of neighbourhood at a considerable distance as to locality. A +friendly policeman directed Mary into the Strand, and another told her +which 'bus to take. By the time the girl arrived at her destination +she had fourpence in her possession. + +But she did not care about that. She was on the right track now, and +if luck were dead against her she could walk home. Here was Hamerton +Gardens at length, and the litter of straw and refuse before the house +testified to the fact that somebody had recently occupied the house or +left it. With a courage that was all her own, Mary walked up the steps +and rang the bell. As nobody responded to the summons, she opened the +door and walked in. She had made no mistake, she recognised the +umbrella stand at a glance. There was no linoleum down in the hall as +yet and the stair carpets were rolled up on the floor. + +Somebody crossed the hall and entered a little room on the right. Mary +fairly gasped as she noted the tall figure in the grey silk. She +wondered if she could credit her eyes. For the tall figure in the grey +silk was Lady Dashwood! + + + + +CHAPTER XLIII. +GETTING NEARER + + +Mary drew back a moment to see what was going to happen. She ought to +have been utterly taken by surprise at her discovery, but she felt no +emotion of that kind. She was past the feeling--life had been too full +of thrilling incidents during the last few hours for that. It never +occurred to the girl that she had made a mistake. In an instant her +mind was made up. Very swiftly and silently she darted after Lady +Dashwood, and followed her into a room at the back of the house. There +was a grimy specimen of the London charwoman on the floor, scrubbing +the dirty boards apparently in readiness for the laying of a roll of +linoleum that stood in one corner. A bottle half filled with beer +ornamented the mantelpiece, and from this the worker on the floor +frequently refreshed herself, as her red face testified. + +She looked up angrily as Lady Dashwood entered. The intruder had to +ask her question twice before she drew a reply. + +"Mrs. Speed isn't in," the woman said, "and if she was, she would not +care to see any visitors as yet. We only moved in here last night, and +not so much as an odd man to help for love nor money, and me fit to +drop." + +"I am sorry to hear that," Lady Dashwood said in her gentle manner, "I +have come up from the country especially to see Mrs. Speed. Can you +give me any idea what time she is likely to be back again?" + +"No, I can't," was the surly reply, "not before tea-time anyway. If +you like to wait in the dining-room, you can do so--you don't look the +sort to go off with anything. And there's an armchair or two in +there." + +As Lady Dashwood turned she came face to face with Mary. She stood +quite still, too utterly surprised to speak. Mary took her by the arm, +and led the way to the dining-room. She pushed one of the chairs +forward, and invited Lady Dashwood to sit down. Then Mary closed the +door. She smiled at the helpless amazement of Lady Dashwood's face. + +"Mary, my dear child, what are you doing here?" the elder lady gasped. + +"I might ask you the same question," Mary said. "What you regard as a +most strange coincidence has a very prosaic explanation. Oh, my +dearest, if you only knew how glad I am to see you again! If you only +knew how I have missed you. But I need not go into that now; there +will be plenty of time presently. My dear, I have been learning things +the last two days and have been making discoveries. You may not +believe it, but I am glad that I came here, yes, glad, glad!" + +"You are looking fairly well," Lady Dashwood observed. "A little pale +and drawn, but there is something in your eyes that I never noticed +before. A sort of new strength and tenderness combined, not so hard +and proud. But you seem pale and tired." + +Mary laughed. She had good reason to be pale and tired. She wondered +what Lady Dashwood would say when she heard last night's adventure. + +"I am utterly worn out," she said frankly, "and yet I am glad I came +to London. You can't tell how much good it is doing me. Strange as it +may seem, I am quite happy, and all the more so because I am fighting +for the good of other people. Hitherto, I have never thought of +anybody but myself. As you know, I came up to London with an idea of +getting my own living. I was going to be very proud and independent. I +had a vague idea that being a Dashwood would make the ground clear for +me. I blush now to think of my ignorance and folly. But I am wandering +from the point. You will recollect that Mr. Darnley offered to ask a +friend of his in London to assist me. + +"I refused the offer, of course, in my stupid way. But Connie Colam +met me at Victoria. What I should have done without her, goodness +knows. She was kindness itself to me. And in a very short time we +became fast friends. Fancy me, _me_, giving my heart to a girl who +lives in Bloomsbury, and gets her living by doing horrible drawings +for a low-class paper!" + +"It seems strange," Lady Dashwood murmured, "I hope that she is----" + +"My dear, Connie is a lady. Oh, if you only knew how my eyes have been +opened! And there is another girl, a lady, too, called Grace Cameron. +But you are going to meet them and satisfy yourself that I am not +degrading the great house of Dashwood. Grace Cameron is an invalid, +and last night we stayed at her house very late finishing some work +for her. We did not get home till past two in the morning. What do you +think of that for a Dashwood?" + +Lady Dashwood could not repress a smile. It seemed very dreadful and +unconventional, but there was a glad, tender ring in Mary's voice that +the elder lady liked. + +"We walked home through the streets at that hour," Mary went on, "and +when we reached our rooms the house was empty. Everything had gone! +And that brings me to the cause of my presence here at this moment. +Our landlady was Mrs. Speed, the woman who has just moved in here. She +had got into trouble over her rent; she was afraid that her furniture +was going to be sold up, and when we were out last night she had taken +everything away. No doubt the poor woman was half distracted, but it +was a cruel thing to do with us. She might have given us a hint. She +might have left our belongings behind. But she didn't and there we +were bereft of everything that we possessed in the world at two +o'clock in the morning." + +"Oh, my darling," Lady Dashwood cried, "what did you do then?" + +"There was nothing to do. We had very little money and nowhere to go. +So, as it was a fine night, we slept on the Thames Embankment and +breakfasted at a coffee stall in the morning. Mary Dashwood sleeping +in the streets! Fancy it! Today I discovered where Mrs. Speed had +gone, and I am here to demand the return of our goods and chattels. +But I can quite understand why you are here." + +"What do you mean?" Lady Dashwood faltered. + +"Well, I will tell you. When I went to Mrs. Speed's to share rooms +with Connie I was struck by the appearance of the woman. It seemed to +me that I had seen her before, and in some strange way she recalled my +very early childhood. I seemed to recollect the creature years and +years ago sitting in your boudoir and crying. She was wearing a black +dress. It is one of the fragments of memory that cling to one long +after the surrounding circumstances are forgotten. I could not get rid +of the feeling, and I asked the woman about it. She said I must be +mistaken, because she came from a place called Dashwood, near Dashwood +Hall. I doubt if she knew my name. I had my own reasons for not +betraying my identity as you can imagine, but when Mrs. Speed told me +that I knew that I was not mistaken. And knowing that she came from +the old place, I was not surprised to see you here after all." + +Lady Dashwood's agitation deepened. Mary could see that she was +greatly moved. + +"The woman spoke the truth," the elder lady whispered, "her people +lived on the estate for many generations. And for years I have lost +sight of her. I can't tell you the story, Mary, because it is not all +mine to tell. And this morning I received a telegram from Mrs. Speed +at this address saying that she was in great trouble and asking for an +interview. I did not send any answer to the telegram because I decided +to come in person. When things are explained, they always become more +simple." + +"Not in this case," Mary said boldly. "My dear, I have found out +something far more important than that Mrs. Speed comes from Dashwood. +I was going to the kitchen to get a glass of milk yesterday morning +when I heard what sounded like a quarrel in the dining-room between +Mrs. Speed and some man. The man's voice sounded so familiar to me +that I stopped to listen. He was after some letters, the name of +Dashwood was mentioned--one letter was of the greatest importance. And +then the man came out; he did not see me, but I recognised him. Can +you guess who he was?" + +Lady Dashwood made no reply for the moment. Her face had grown very +pale and her long, slim hand shook so that the rings on her fingers +shimmered in the light. + +"You had better tell me," she ventured to say at length. "I fancy I +can guess, though I had not expected treachery as black as this. The +man was----" + +"Sir Vincent Dashwood. Oh, there is no mistake about it. I saw him as +plainly as I see you at this moment. He had called at Keppel Terrace +to threaten and bully. It seems that he had had all Mrs. Speed's +savings. And he told her that if he could have that particular letter +he would let her have as much money as she needed. She spoke then of +the danger in which she stood in regard to her rent. She was going to +see the agent of the property the same day. Probably he would not wait +any longer, and hence the sudden flitting in the night. What does it +all mean, Lady Dashwood? Why should this Sir Vincent want that letter? +And how much longer are we all going to remain under the tyranny of +that man?" + +Lady Dashwood made no reply. There was a sound of voices close by, and +in one of them Mary recognised the querulous tones of Mrs. Speed. + +"Go and see her," Mary said, "I will wait here. But please do not +disclose my identity. And when you have finished, wait in the street +for me. My business with Mrs. Speed will not take long. After that, I +want you to come and see my new friends, I want you to know what +manner of life I am living. There are other things that I shall want +to know too, but they will keep for the present." + + + + +CHAPTER XLIV. +THE DREARY WAY + + +Mary's patience was fairly well tried before she had an opportunity of +seeing Mrs. Speed. She heard the latter cry out in astonishment at the +sight of Lady Dashwood; she heard the two take their way up the +uncarpeted stairs; she could hear restless footsteps overhead. It was +quite an hour before they came down. Mary could not quite hear what +was passing, but she heard enough to know that Mrs. Speed was in +tears. + +The tears gave way to a sullen red as Mary came out of the +dining-room. She said nothing as the girl beckoned her into the room +and shut the door. + +"We need not waste any time," Mary said, "you will guess what I came +for." + +"Who told you where to find me?" was the terrified question in a +whisper. "You don't mean to say that in Keppel Terrace they know +already----" + +"I am not concerned as to what Keppel Terrace knows or thinks," Mary +said coldly. "I came back to our rooms last night very late with Miss +Colam. To our great surprise and consternation we found the house +empty. Our own things had gone with the rest. You might have left +them, as they did not belong to you. Miss Colam, who has had more +experience in the seamy side of life than I have, says that this +midnight flitting is quite usual with a certain class of people. She +gave me an experience of a friend of hers, but in that case her +belongings were left behind. What did you suppose that we were going +to do?" + +The woman shook her head sullenly. With her wider knowledge of the +world she seemed to think that she had an easy prey in Mary. + +"_I_ don't know," she said, "and I didn't care. I've been too badly +used by the world to have much sympathy left for other people. And I +had to move. The agent told me that he was going to put an execution +in today, and I had no time to lose. I don't want to keep your traps +and things; I daresay they are here somewhere. Come again in a few +days' time, and I will see what I can do for you. I'm busy now." + +The speaker advanced half threateningly towards Mary, with an +intention of bustling her out of the room. Mary's eyes flashed angrily +as she stood before the door. + +"Now listen to me," she said in clear, incisive tones. "As a landlady +of experience in such matters you must know that it is almost +impossible for Miss Colam and myself to obtain other lodgings without +our boxes and things. Last night we slept out of doors because we had +nowhere to go. You think that because you live so far away from Keppel +Terrace you can do as you like. If I go from here now without our +belongings I shall at once see the agent of the Keppel Terrace +property and tell him where you are to be found. I can easily get the +address of the agent from the people next door to your last house. I +don't know much about the law, but you can be punished for this kind +of thing, I feel quite certain. Now what are you going to do?" + +The battle was over almost as soon as it had begun. The woman lost her +threatening air and her face became pleading. The easy tears fell from +her cheeks. "I'm sure I don't want to do anything wrong," she said, +"only you don't know all the trouble and anxiety that I've been put +to. When I came to London first I had money in the bank and a good +house of furniture, very different from the miserable sticks I have +about me now. I was doing well. Oh, you think you know what trouble is +and misery, but wait till you see the son you have loved and slaved +for grow up to be a curse and a blight to you; I sacrificed everything +for that boy and he has ruined me. He gets money from everybody, he +has had all mine, and I go on giving him more. He never comes near me +unless he wants something. If you knew everything, you would be sorry +for me." + +Mary made no reply for the moment. She was piecing the puzzle rapidly +together in her mind. She was wondering what the connection was +between the erring son and the man who called himself Sir Vincent +Dashwood. She would have asked a question or two, but it did not seem +discreet to do so at this moment. + +"At present I need all my sympathy for Miss Colam and myself," Mary +said coldly. "You will be good enough to find our boxes. There is a +desk of mine that I need, a little desk in a leather case. I shall be +glad to know that it is safe." + +"I think I saw it a little while ago," Mrs. Speed said eagerly. She +seemed quite anxious to make amends now. "I fancy it was in one of the +bedrooms. I hope you will believe me, miss when I tell you that I had +clean forgotten all about you two young ladies. You see, I had to get +away at a moment's notice. There was the house to find and the van to +arrange for. One way and another I was fairly worked off my feet. If +you'll come along with me now, I'll see what I can do for you. There's +a great pile of boxes upstairs." + +Most of the missing boxes were identified at last, but they were more +or less buried under a great heap of things. Mary gave a sigh of +relief to find that the precious writing-case was intact and the lock +unbroken. And there was a box of hers on the top of the pile, and in +that she knew was all that she would require for a day or two. If she +could get that away she would be able to supply Connie with what was +necessary in the way of linen. And it would be as well to leave the +rest until she had procured fresh lodgings. + +"Get your woman to call a cab," she said, "I'll take this box with me +and the others can remain till we are ready for them. Directly we have +somewhere to go I will send you a telegram with the address, and you +will give our belongings to one of the carriers." + +"You may depend on that, miss," Mrs. Speed said eagerly, "I'm sorry +this happened, I am indeed. If I had only thought of it I would have +given you a hint before. Now I'll go and see if I can get a cab for +you." + +The cab was procured at length and the precious box hoisted on the +top. Lady Dashwood was patiently waiting at the end of the road. The +cab pulled up, and Mary hailed her friend eagerly. A great weight had +fallen from her mind, she could see the way clear for the future now. +If misfortune dogged her, she had made up her mind to go back to the +dower house. But now she was spared that blow to her pride. + +She wondered, with a tender smile on her lips, if Ralph Darnley would +call this the proper kind of pride. In her mind Mary decided that he +would. It would be possible now to arrange to stay for the present +under the same roof with Grace Cameron. Then Mary remembered with +dismay that her ready cash had been locked up in a box, and that the +box in question was not on the top of the cab. Not that she was afraid +of anything happening to the money; still, money was urgently needed. + +The jewels were safe anyway--they reposed in the cab on the seat +opposite to Mary. And Lady Dashwood was seated by her side. The girl +was in high spirits: tired as she was, she was happier than she had +been for years. It came to her now that she had an object in life, +something definite to live for. She was doing good in the world; her +eyes had been opened to the nobility of life as lived by the brave +poor. What a poor thing the Dashwood pride seemed by comparison. + +"You must know that I have been entirely successful," Mary said gaily. +Lady Dashwood had never heard her speak in this tone of voice before. +"I have bearded the lioness in her den and actually got the better of +her. I am more than pleased with the success of my scheme and the way +in which I have worked it out, Lady Dashwood. Please don't tell me +that you are going back home by an early train." + +"I should like to go back at once and take you with me, child," Lady +Dashwood said. "You don't know how lonely I am without you! And yet I +am quite sure that you are learning a valuable lesson in these sordid +surroundings." + +Mary's face flushed with pleasure. A few days before she would have +resented a suggestion like that from Lady Dashwood or anybody else. +Her mind had been closed to everything, had been too proud to learn. +And now Lady Dashwood's remark was a compliment. + +"Yes," she said softly, "I am learning a great lesson--the lesson of +humanity. It is astonishing how my mental vision has cleared already. +I blush with shame to think of the uselessness of my past life. But +you will come with me and see the dear companions who have taught me +this lesson?" + +"I think I will," Lady Dashwood said, "I need not get home till the +last train. I have half promised to dine informally with an old friend +of mine in Stratton Street. I shall have plenty of time to see your +friends. I am quite sure that they are ladies; you could not be happy +with them otherwise." + +"Oh, they are," Mary cried, "and now I am going to tell you all about +them and their hopes and ambitions. Grace's story is quite a pretty +romance in its way. It will tell you all about her, so that you need +not betray your lack of knowledge." + +Mary rambled on in a pleasant way until the cab reached its +destination. There was a pure, womanly ring in her voice that Lady +Dashwood noted with gladness. She had always deemed Mary too hard and +cold, too unsympathetic to the weaknesses and failings of other +people. The elder lady's eyes were moist as she descended from the +cab, and Mary guessed the reason. And then it came to her, too, that +she would have been glad if Ralph Darnley had been with them. + + + + +CHAPTER XLV. +THE WALLS OF PRIDE + + +"Now I must get you to pay for the cab," Mary went on in the same gay +voice, "for I haven't the money, at least, not in my pocket. You will +find the place very small and mean, but it is not quite so bad as some +of the cottages on the Dashwood estate. If ever good fortune took me +back there as mistress I should do a great deal with the cottages on +the place. I begin to understand now how trying is the lot of the +poor. But I am dreaming again. Please come this way." + +Grace Cameron lay on a couch in the window getting as much fresh air +as possible. Towards her Lady Dashwood looked with special interest, +for Mary had told Grace's story at some length. The girl flushed as +she noted the striking personality of her visitor. She essayed to rise +from the sofa. + +"No, don't you move, my dear," Lady Dashwood said. "Quite by accident +I met Mary here, and she insisted upon bringing me to see you both. I +think she has told me everything about you. And it was quite natural +that I should like to see you. So this is Connie Colam. I think you +are a couple of very brave girls." + +And Lady Dashwood proceeded to kiss them both in the most natural +manner. She found her way into their hearts at once. + +"You are a darling," Connie said in her candid manner. "It is good of +you, Lady Dashwood. We were eating our hearts out with anxiety when +Mary came in. And Mary looks quite the conquering hero, I declare." + +"Victory!" Mary cried, "my clever detective scheme has been quite +successful. I have brought all we need with me, and the rest will +follow on the despatch of a telegram. I have had a long interview with +Mrs. Speed, and so far as I can see----" + +"I hope you gave her what she deserved," Connie cried. + +"I'm ashamed to say I didn't," Mary confessed. "The poor woman +appeared to be in distress. She said that she had forgotten all about +us, and I believed her. It seems that she has a dissipated, selfish +son who has brought her to this pass--Lady Dashwood, what is the +matter?" + +"The London heat always tries me like this," Lady Dashwood murmured +faintly, "I daresay I shall be quite myself when I have had a cup of +tea. Connie shall make it for me--Mary says that she has the real art +of tea-making. So this is the place where you work. You look as if a +good rest would do you good, Grace." + +Grace Cameron smiled wearily. It was one of her bad days, and the heat +had affected her. Her mind was filled now with pictures of the sea +breaking cool over the rocks; she thought of deep woods where the +breeze played in the trees. + +"I can't afford to rest," she said; "if I did not go on working I +should lose my reason. And I do hate London so. Still, I have a mother +more or less dependent upon me, and for her sake I have to go on. If I +could manage to get into the country for a few weeks I think I could +regain strength. Connie is an angel of goodness, but I can't let her +do my work for me much longer." + +"That's sinful pride," Connie said with something between a laugh and +a sob. "What vexes her is that her substitute is so poor a workman. +Still, there is a deal in what Grace says, and if she could be in the +country, not too far away from London, where----" + +Lady Dashwood glanced up and met Mary's pleading eyes. She understood +exactly what the girl meant without asking a single question. She +crossed over to the couch and took Grace's thin white hand tenderly in +her own. + +"There is nothing easier," she said, "let me be the fairy godmother. I +am a very lonely old woman, since Mary made up her mind that she would +go out into the world and earn her own living. I was very sad about it +at the time, but I am not so sad now. Because the day is coming when +Mary will return to her old home, and be happier by far than she has +ever been before. Still, I am very lonely now, and I should welcome +some bright young face to gladden the whole home and make life more +tolerable to me. The dower house is a grand old place, and any artist +would soon fall in love with it. Bring your work down there, Gracie, +come and live in the open air and forget your anxiety for the future. +When I looked at Mary just now, her eyes asked me to do this thing. +But I am not doing it to please Mary so much as to please myself. It +is very selfish of me. I know----" + +"Selfish!" Grace cried, "I could love you for what you say. The mere +thought of it makes my heart beat all the faster. But for the sake of +others----" + +"Never mind the others," Connie cried, "go away and get well. I dare +not think what I should do if I had the same opportunity. Go away and +do your own work. How can you have the face to stay here and allow me +to do your drawings for you? It is the most selfish thing I ever heard +of in my life, and I decline to put up with it any longer. . . . Oh, +my dear, it is the very thing that I have been praying for. Don't +hesitate, Grace--think of your mother, of the grand future. If I loved +you less than I do----" + +The smile faded from Connie's face, she had hard work to keep back the +tears. Lady Dashwood's smile, too, was watery and unsteady. She was +glad to find that Mary had fallen in with companions like these. She +could understand now why the girl had softened and improved. Hitherto +she had regarded Mary as perfect, but this was a chastened and +purified Mary of whom she had never dreamed. She could see the working +of Grace's mind in her face. + +"You are very good to me," the girl said slowly, "everybody is good to +me. I never knew how much goodness there was in the world till my +health began to fail. It made me hard and bitter to see those +frivolous society people roll by in their carriages, and think that +the money they wasted on one abandoned toy would have sufficed to give +me back the strength I needed. Mary knows what I mean." + +"I do, indeed," Mary said with a flush on her face, "but I had to pay +for my knowledge of my selfish folly by the loss of everything that I +held most dear. And now that I have learned my lesson, I have nothing +to put it into practice with. Still, the point does not refer to Lady +Dashwood, who is quite sincere in what she says. If you hesitate any +longer, Grace, I shall regard myself as a murderess. You will not +carry your pride so far as to endanger your life." + +"No, no," Grace cried, "you are all right and I am wrong. I know +perfectly well that if I stay here like this I shall die. Therefore, +with the deepest gratitude, I have decided to accept Lady Dashwood's +offer. Oh, if you only knew how I long for the sight of a green +tree----" + +"Then that is settled," Lady Dashwood said, "you are to come and take +Mary's place without delay. I will come up on Saturday and fetch you. +And I decline to hear a single word of thanks--it is a mutual +pleasure, Grace. Now, let us have the cup of tea, and then I must be +going. And I am very glad that Mary has made friends with you girls." + +Lady Dashwood departed presently, and for a little time the girls were +silent. Grace lay there looking out of the window, her eyes filled +with happy tears. Already in her imagination she could hear the murmur +of the trees over her head. + +"I can't help it," she said presently, "I feel as if a great doctor +had told me to live after another surgeon had passed the sentence of +death. An hour ago I did not seem to care what happened, now I can +feel the joy of life in my finger tips. My ambition is singing a tale +of hope in my ears. . . . But what about you both? What are you going +to do?" + +"Yes, what are we going to do?" Connie said in tones of dismay, "we +have no money. Mary was too proud to ask her relation for any, which +was quite right. Unless, perhaps, Mary has recovered her purse, in +which case----" + +"Well, I haven't," Mary explained, "I forgot all about it. Still, it +is only a matter of a day or so, and, meanwhile, I have something that +will do quite as well. I daresay Grace's landlady will find us a spare +bedroom." + +"I believe there is such a thing in the house," Grace said dubiously, +"but my landlady is by no means a nice person, and she has done very +well lately. She is sure to ask to see your boxes, and if you tell her +the truth she will not believe you. Still, you must find quarters +somewhere for tonight, and it would do no harm to have the woman up +and see her." + +The landlady came, hard of face and none too pleasant of manner. She +listened in grim disapproval. She did not wish to insinuate anything, +but she had suffered in the past. She attached a value to the +possession of personal belongings, she had little faith in lodgers who +came without them. To all this Mary listened with a heightened colour +and a rising temper. + +"I suppose a week, or say a fortnight's rent in advance would do for +you?" she asked. "It seems the likeliest arrangement for a woman of +your stamp." + +"Nothing better, miss," the woman retorted, "money talks. Pay a +sovereign on account, and I shall have no more to say. Pay me, and +I'll treat you well; on the other hand----" + +"There is going to be no 'other hand,'" Mary replied with her head in +the air. "Perhaps you will be so good as to change me a five-pound +note?" + +The woman gasped. She could not possibly do such a thing. + +"Very well," Mary went on, serene in her victory, "you need not stay +any longer. I'll go out and get change, and let you have the sovereign +without delay." + +The woman vanished with a respectful salutation. Mary crossed over to +her writing-case. + +"My education is growing apace," she laughed, "my dearest Connie, will +you be so good as to tell me the way to the nearest pawnbroker's?" + + + + +CHAPTER XLVI. +THE HEAD OF THE HOUSE + + +The lights in the great silver candlesticks at the dower house shed a +soft radiance over the dinner-table where Lady Dashwood sat alone. It +was not yet dark, the saffron glow of the setting sun still struggled +with the candles. Most of the dishes had been removed, and little +remained but the peaches and the nectarines and the great bloom tinted +grapes in the silver baskets. + +Lady Dashwood sat there alone. She had peeled one of the russet and +golden peaches, but the fragrant luscious fruit lay neglected on her +plate. Her mind was far away from her surroundings. + +The peacefulness of the night suited her more or less painful +meditations. The same spirit of refinement and rest seemed to brood +over the house; it seemed hard to associate a place like that with +misery. And, perhaps, on the whole, Lady Dashwood was not altogether +unhappy. + +She had more or less expected Ralph Darnley to dinner, but he had +declined at the last moment. He had written to say that he might have +the pleasure of coming later, but even as to that he was not quite +certain. + +And so it came about that Lady Dashwood was alone. She had plenty of +food for thought. There was yesterday's adventure, for instance, the +finding of Mary in that unexpected way, and the visit to Grace +Cameron's rooms. + +Well, Lady Dashwood was not sorry that she had been, she was not sorry +either that Mary had made up her mind to try her future in London. In +some subtle way Mary had vastly improved. She had always shown a +proper affection for Lady Dashwood, she loved her passionately, but +she had always been somewhat reserved. She had not thought it right +for a Dashwood to be demonstrative like other people. And she had +cared very little for the sufferings of other people. + +And now all this was changed. Mary had made the great discovery that +she was only human after all, and had begun to take an interest in +sorrow, suffering and gladness, and pleasure. Lady Dashwood was glad +of that. Her own life had been one of constant self-repression. +Perhaps that was all the more reason why she longed for an open +display of affection now. + +She was pleased to find that Mary was learning her lesson and that +Ralph Darnley had been right. Ralph had prophesied from the first that +all Mary needed was the fire of adversity to burn the alloy out of her +system, and leave nothing but the pure gold behind. And his policy had +been wonderfully successful. + +But how much longer was this to continue? was the question that Lady +Dashwood asked herself. + +How long before Ralph would declare himself, and sweep away the blight +that hung over Dashwood Hall at the present moment. Already people +were beginning to talk, already the servants had strange tales to +tell. Dubious men were staying at the Hall, a class of beings quite +unknown to that historic house. + +Sir Vincent Dashwood was entertaining a party at dinner tonight; he +had brought his friends down from London with him earlier in the day. +As yet nobody had called upon the new owner of Dashwood Hall, for +people were holding aloof. They wondered, too, why the deposed head of +the house had cared to stay on there. What Mary was actually doing in +London was not known to anybody outside the home circle, but her +action was approved of. Lady Dashwood hoped that the present state of +things was not likely to last; she was going to ask Ralph to see Mary +and judge for himself whether the punishment had not already gone far +enough. Mary had had her eyes opened and would never be her cold, +proud self again. + +The peach was finished slowly, and Lady Dashwood was thinking of +rising from the table. This solitary dining in state was a terrible +trial to her. She had reached the time of life when she craved for +young people to be about her. The house was very quiet, so quiet that +the loud clang of the front door bell fairly startled Lady Dashwood. +She placed her hand to her heart in some alarm. + +Surely something dreadful had happened! No friend of the family would +ever ring the bell like that. It was, perhaps, a late telegram to say +that Mary--but the noisy voices in the hall did not suggest any +catastrophe. Two or three people were talking at once; Lady Dashwood +was sure she could smell tobacco smoke. Somebody laughed in a loud, +vulgar way. What could it all mean? + +The staid butler came into the dining-room, his manner respectful as +always, but there was a flush on his face. + +"My good Charles," Lady Dashwood exclaimed, "what is the matter?" + +"Your ladyship may well ask that question," the aggrieved butler +replied, "but I beg your ladyship's pardon, I am forgetting myself. We +were sitting down to supper in the housekeeper's room when that ring +startled us. I went to the door. Sir Vincent Dashwood was there, and +those other men,--I mean gentlemen, together with Sir George,--I mean +Mr. Dashwood. And they want to see your ladyship." + +"At this time of night! Are they mad, Charles? Is it possible that +gentlemen who are perfect strangers to me--are smoking in my hall? Are +they--are they--sober?" + +"I think so, your ladyship," Charles said dubiously. "Mr. Dashwood is +all right. As to the rest, I really cannot say. But they are bent +upon seeing you, at least Sir Vincent is. He--he seems to think that +you would find it nice and informal." + +"Informal, certainly," Lady Dashwood said frostily. "Ask them into the +library." + +The speaker was outwardly calm. But she was shaking with a righteous +indignation; a brilliant red spot flamed on either cheek. It was a +very haughty, stately figure that entered the library, a few moments +later. + +"This is an unexpected pleasure," she said. "You will pardon my +old-fashioned ways, but I am not accustomed to entertain strangers at +this hour." + +"That's all right;" the head of the house laughed unsteadily. His eyes +were slightly glazed and he had some difficulty in balancing himself. +"It's all right, grandmother. Mr. Dashwood did not want to come; he +said it wasn't quite the thing." + +"I'm glad of that," Lady Dashwood said haughtily. Her cold eyes swept +over the figure of George Dashwood, who stood by the doorway a picture +of confusion. "Mr. Dashwood was right, and as to these friends of +yours----" + +"They're all right," the head of the house went on. "Mr. Cotton and +Mr. Newfell, my grandmother. Cotton is something in the City, made a +pile of money there. When he isn't making money he spends his spare +time in going over old houses. I told him about this one, and he is +anxious to see it. It is just the kind of place he wants to buy, and +if he offers me a fancy price for it, you will have to find somewhere +else to go, old lady." + +Lady Dashwood stood there trembling. She had no words to meet this +unpardonable insult. And the speaker was quite within his right. He +was in a position to sell the dower house if he chose. The head of the +family had that privilege, seeing that the little property formed no +part of the settled estate. + +"I am afraid Lady Dashwood objects," the man called Cotton said. + +"Indeed I should, sir," Lady Dashwood replied. "I am afraid I can't +blame you so much as my--my grandson for this unpardonable intrusion." + +The City man flushed, but he had the grace to say nothing. The head of +the house fairly tingled. + +"Insult be hanged," he cried, "what are you talking about? We only +looked in just to give my friend Cotton some idea of the place. _I'm_ +not anxious to sell. It's a thirsty night, you fellows. Ring the bell, +somebody, and ask the butler for a whisky and soda." + +"Better not," Cotton said, "it isn't quite the thing. Besides, you +have had enough already. I can see that we ought not to have come here +at all." + +Lady Dashwood felt almost grateful to the speaker. There was silence +for a moment, and then from the hall came the sound of Ralph Darnley's +voice. Here was somebody at any rate who could grapple with the +situation. Forgetful of her real dignity, Lady Dashwood turned away +and crossed over to the hall. She was shaking from head to foot now +and the tears had gathered in her eyes. + +"You poor dear soul," Ralph whispered, as he kissed the trembling +lips. "Charles has been telling me all about it. He was so full of the +matter that he almost forgot himself. So you are already enjoying the +fruits of the change of proprietorship. Go back to the drawing-room +and compose yourself. I will soon get rid of those men for you." + +Ralph strode into the library. His fingers were itching to be at the +throats of the men. But that could not be. He was so angry that his +politeness was exaggerated. + +"Lady Dashwood is very sorry," he said, "but you will have to excuse +her tonight. She is not accustomed to visitors, especially at this +time in the evening. Sir Vincent, your display of family affection is +a little too exuberant." + +"_I_ did not want to come, sir," Cotton said sulkily. + +"Thank you; therefore you will not mind going. Goodnight, gentlemen. +Goodnight, Mr. Dashwood. You will pardon me, I am sure. Well?" + +For the head of the family sat sullenly in his chair though the rest +had got beyond the shadow of the front door by this time. He looked up +defiantly at Ralph. + + + + +CHAPTER XLVII. +"HOW LONG, HOW LONG!" + + +"If it isn't a rude question," he said, "who are you? What do you mean +by interfering in this way?" + +"It does not matter in the least who I am," Ralph replied. "To put it +bluntly, Lady Dashwood has asked me to get rid of you. Until you have +disposed of this portion of the property, the house belongs to her +ladyship. Your dissolute companions have already gone. I don't blame +them, however. I have no doubt that they expected a congenial welcome +here. They probably drew a wrong picture altogether of Lady Dashwood. +They had the grace to be ashamed of themselves." + +"Once more," Dashwood said with drunken gravity, "who are you?" + +"As I said before, it does not in the least matter," Ralph replied. +"At the present moment I am acting on behalf of Lady Dashwood. I know +that it is not the slightest good to appeal to your better feelings, +for the simple reason that they don't exist. Will you be so good as to +go, or am I to resort to force?" + +Dashwood laughed. The hot blood mounted to Ralph's face and the full +force of his passion tingled to his finger-tips. He threw open the +long window that led to the lawn; then he advanced to the figure +lounging in the chair. He wasted no time in argument, but bent over +the chair and dragged Dashwood out by the throat. A moment later the +latter was flung violently on to the grass, where he lay dazed and +confused for a moment. Presently he picked himself up, and loafed +after his companions, who were noisily walking down the avenue. It was +a relief to Ralph to know that the fellow was not seriously hurt. + +As if nothing had happened, he made his way to the dining-room. Lady +Dashwood was pacing up and down the room, her face white and set, her +eyes full of flaming anger. All the fiery blood of the race was raging +in her veins now. + +"So they have gone," she cried. "A pretty outrage indeed! I shall have +the villagers here next dropping in on their way from the inn of a +Saturday night. Have men of that class no manners, no respect for the +feelings of others?" + +"You can't altogether blame them," Ralph said soothingly. "Probably +they took you to be what that drunken ruffian yonder would call 'a +good sort.' They judged you by him, and I am quite sure that Mr. +George Dashwood did all he could----" + +"He didn't," Lady Dashwood flashed out. "He is a coward and a +poltroon. He is not worthy to be the father of a girl like Mary. Fancy +him cringing and fawning on a man like that for the sake of a good +home and the dainty food that he loves better than his independence! +But I don't blame him and the man who calls himself Sir Vincent +Dashwood so much as I blame _you_." + +"_Me!_" Ralph asked in some surprise, "what have I done?" + +"Everything. You have brought all this about. If it had not been for +you, this disgraceful scene could not have happened. For purposes of +your own, you have placed a puppet on the throne at Dashwood--a +disgraceful, drunken image, that is not worthy to be called a man. Why +do you do it?" + +"I think you know perfectly well," Ralph, said gently. "I am very, +very sorry; I could not have foreseen anything like this. Won't you +forgive me?" + +All the hot, rebellious anger died out of Lady Dashwood's heart. + +"I must, when you speak to me like that," she said. "When you look at +me with your father's eyes, and speak to me with his voice, I could +find it in me to forgive you anything. But you must own that it is +very hard to bear, Ralph. When you came back here like a figure from +the grave, I began to hope that God was going to be good to me in my +declining years. I have sinned heavily, but I have paid the penalty. +When I saw you that day at the fire I recognised you at once, as +Slight had done. My prayers had been answered, and one of my flesh and +blood had come back to claim the old inheritance. And you had come to +free me from the hateful attentions of the impostor who so grievously +insulted me tonight. But you did nothing of the sort; you tried to +hide yourself from me as if you were guilty of something shameful." + +"But, my dear grandmother, I told you why," Ralph protested. "I had to +work out my life's romance in a way that seemed best to me. And Fate +played into my hands--the little affair of the silver matchbox forced +the so-called Dashwood to speak. Still, it will not be for long. I saw +the family solicitors yesterday--are by no means disposed to let +matters remain as they are. Have you any idea as to the real identity +of the man who calls himself Sir Vincent Dashwood?" + +"I _had_," Lady Dashwood said. "But I was certain yesterday. I saw his +mother. Oh, but yesterday was a day of surprises." + +"His mother," Ralph cried. "Is she still alive? She was Agnes +Edgerton, sister of my father's first wife. Is not that so?" + +"Absolutely correct, but I did not know it till yesterday; I thought +that she was dead long since. I have never heard a word of her since +she left the village seventeen years ago. And because she knew of my +crime, because she knew of the great sin that hangs over the house, +she wrote to me and asked me to help her. It appears that she had been +residing in London at a place called Keppel Terrace, where she has +tried to live by letting lodgings." + +"That much I know," Ralph said. "She wrote to my father from time to +time. What I did not know is that she had a son. Please go on." + +"It was a most pitiful letter she wrote me. She was going to lose her +home if she did not receive a certain sum by a certain time. The +letter came too late for me to help. It was followed by a telegram +asking me to send the money to another address. Had you not come into +my life, had things been different, I should have sent the money and +thought no more about it. But things came into my mind and a vague +suspicion that I felt bound to verify. I went to London yesterday and +I saw Mrs. Speed. She told me that it was her son who had brought her +to this pass. Of course, up to that time I had no idea she had a son. +I asked her to show me his photograph, and she did so. You can guess +whose likeness it was?" + +"I can guess now," Ralph said. "Of course, it was the man who is at +present master of Dashwood Hall. Did the woman know that?" + +"Oh, dear, no. She has not the least idea. But you can see now where +the impostor got all his knowledge, and how he came into possession of +so many documents." + +"Not quite," Ralph said, "I want a little light on this particular +spot." + +"Well, that is easy. When your father fell in love with his first +wife, Maria Edgerton, they took the sister Agnes, now Mrs. Speed, into +their confidence. She received and kept all the letters, at least, she +seems to have kept the letters after Maria Edgerton died. Of course, +when the affair came to the ears of your grandfather and myself we +were terribly annoyed. Mind you, I had nothing whatever to say against +Maria Edgerton. She was very good and beautiful, but very simple +indeed, and ignorant of the ways of the world. We thought that we had +put an end to the affair, but we failed, and your father and Maria +Edgerton were secretly married. Even then we had hopes of hushing up +the scandal. Your father had to go away with his regiment, and we +persuaded his wife that he was dead. I did that, and old Patience +helped me. And so did Slight--we were all in the disgraceful business. +Don't ask me why I did it; call it the curse of the family pride if +you like. We thought the woman would go away and forget. Instead of +that she pined and died. When the news came to me I felt like a +murderess. I have never been the same woman again, I never shall be. +And your father found it all out, he came home, and there was a +dreadful scene. He went away declaring that he would never come home +again, and he kept his word. I dared not write to him directly, but +sent my letters through Mrs. Speed. Now you can understand how her son +has come to be so well posted in the secret history of our house. He +must have read and re-read those letters till he had them by heart. +But his mother did not know, she does not guess. How much longer is +this state of affairs to continue, Ralph?" + +Ralph shook his head. These revelations came as a surprise to him. And +it was a very sad and very dreadful confession that Lady Dashwood had +made to him. + +"All that I have heard confirms me in my opinion that I have acted for +the best," he said. "I cannot absolve you from blame, grandmother, +indeed I cannot. For the sake of the family pride, you have suffered +this remorse for nearly forty years. And yet, in the face of it all, +knowing that Mary was coming into the property some day, you fostered +the same spirit in her. I love Mary, and the one great object in my +life is to make her my wife. But I wanted to be loved for my own sake, +and not for the sake of the family fetish. My plan----" + +"Is succeeding," Lady Dashwood cried. "Nay, it has succeeded already. +Go and see Mary, call on her and ascertain for yourself whether I am +speaking the truth or not. She has only been gone a few days, but +already the change has worked wonders. Put your future to the touch, +and you will not be disappointed. Only end this dreadful state of +affairs, turn that man out of the Hall, let me see the place sweet and +wholesome again before I die." + +Ralph hesitated. It was a tempting picture that Lady Dashwood had +drawn for him. But he could not quite entertain the idea that already +Mary had changed her nature entirely, as a grub turns to a butterfly. +At the same time Lady Dashwood's plea was not one to be turned from +lightly. + +"I will see Mary," he said, "I will go to her tomorrow. I must see +Mrs. Speed also, for I have a message to deliver to her from my +father. You see, I had no idea where to look for her. Patience my +dear, dear lady, patience. After the lapse of forty years you will not +mind waiting for a few days longer." + + + + +CHAPTER XLVIII. +FACE TO FACE + + +"You are getting on," Connie cried, "after a time you will become a +Radical. Already you are fast forgetting the caste of Vere de Vere, +especially after your visit to the pawnbroker's yesterday. Tell me, +did you feel very much afraid?" + +"Well, no, I didn't," Mary laughed. "It was not such a dreadful +experience after all. You see, I had the face of our landlady before +my eyes. I tried to think of nothing but the fact that we had another +night out of doors before us. I don't believe I even trembled as I +placed a diamond ring on the counter and asked a loan of five pounds +on it. Perhaps I was just a little afraid of being given in custody on +a charge of dealing with stolen goods. Ah! the glow of satisfaction +when I found that money in my pocket! Will you believe me, Connie +dear, I was thinking nothing about myself, but about you and Grace. +And when I got back here and saw your faces it was the happiest moment +in my life." + +Connie kissed the speaker affectionately. She was genuinely touched, +though she did not care to own it. She pointed to the brushes and +paints on the table. + +"Well, don't be prodigal," she said. "I've managed to get you five +hundred cards to paint and they will take you a whole week. And now +I'll go and find some fresh work to do. Thanks to Mrs. Speed's exit, I +have lost my _Wheezer_ job. As the drawings were not on time I've been +told that I need not ask for any more work. It is such a pity, because +it was such regular, steady employment." + +Connie spoke lightly, but Mary could see she felt it. She painted on +at her cards till nearly luncheon-time, until her back ached and her +fingers were almost too stiff to hold a brush. But there was peace and +contentment in her heart, a feeling of happiness and gladness that she +had never felt before. She took a glass of milk and a bun presently, +and then put on her hat to go as far as Mrs. Speed's. Though the +promised telegram had been sent, the necessary boxes had not turned up +yet. And Mary was getting anxious. She would go and fetch the boxes; +in the circumstances, the luxury of a cab would be justified. + +Mary swung along the street with a free step and a sense of joyful +elation. She had not gone far before somebody touched her lightly on +the shoulder. She started and turned to find herself face to face with +Ralph Darnley. He looked bronzed and well. The tan on his handsome +face brought with it a whiff of the country. There was no mistaking +the genuine pleasure that shone in his eyes as he held Mary's hand in +his. + +"I called at your rooms," he said, "and they told me that you had just +gone out. I followed quickly with wonderful luck. Where are you +going?" + +"Off to the wilds of North London," Mary laughed. She felt a strange +sense of gladness in the presence of Ralph; a certain shy happiness +possessed her. "Our late landlady went off with our boxes. We had to +sleep out the night before last." + +"So Lady Dashwood told me," Ralph replied. "It must have been a +dreadful experience. And yet you look very well and happy, Mary." + +The girl laughed in a shy kind of way. + +"I really believe I am," she confessed. "Mind you, it was very +dreadful at first. I felt so utterly lost and sad that I very nearly +came back and proclaimed my defeat." + +"At the expense of the family pride?" Ralph laughed. + +"Yes," Mary said quietly with a flush on her face. "I am coming to the +conclusion that the family pride is a great mistake. It made me so +cold and self-contained. I never seemed to know what it was to have +sympathy for anybody. To be a Dashwood is a great thing, of course. +But there are far higher and nobler aims. Those two girls I live with +made me thoroughly ashamed of myself. They are ladies who get their +own living by art work--but, of course, you know all about Connie +Colam. What a nature she has!" + +"One of the noblest in the world," Ralph said quietly. "Mary, I hoped +that you would grow like her. I hoped that her example would be a +benefit to you. With your beauty and her disposition, you would be one +of the most perfect women that God ever made. Ah, the man will be +lucky indeed who calls Connie Colam his wife." + +Mary assented warmly enough, and yet at the same time she was +conscious of just a tinge of passing jealousy at the high praise of +her friend. Ralph had told her all along that he loved her, that there +was no other girl in the world for him. Had her coldness killed that +love? Then she told herself that it did not matter, seeing that the +affection was not returned in the way that Ralph meant. All the same, +she could not rid herself of the impression that such a thing would +take all the light out of her life, and leave her alone and desolate +indeed. + +"Connie thinks very highly of you," she said shyly. + +"That is very good of her," Ralph replied with something like a sigh, +"but we are too good friends ever to care for each other in any other +way. Still, she is doing you good, Mary. There is something about you +that I can't describe, some subtle change for the better. I never +noticed till now that you had such a sweet and tender smile and there +is a thrill in your voice that makes you pure and womanly. My +experiment has been a success." + +"What experiment is that?" Mary asked innocently. + +"What am I saying?" Ralph laughed. "I have a confession to make later, +but it is not the time to go into that. It is good to be by your side +again, listening to your voice. Now, tell me all that you are doing." + +Mary did not need to be asked. She fairly bubbled over with delight. +The deep thrill that Ralph had noticed in her voice touched him and +caused a chord to throb in response. It seemed almost impossible to +believe that this was the Mary of the old days, the proud, distant +creature whose head was in the clouds contemplating the glory of the +family. She was tender and warm and confiding, and the flush on her +face gave the one thing needed to make her fair and radiant beauty +complete. _This_ was the girl that Ralph loved, the woman of his +fondest dreams. He felt as if he could walk by her side for ever. + +"But you will think me conceited," she said presently; "I have talked +of nothing but myself for half an hour or more. Please do not laugh at +me." + +"Certainly not," Ralph said indignantly. "I have no intention of +laughing at you, Mary. It is a positive joy to me to hear you talking +like this! And so there are better, truer things than the Dashwood +pride and the family pedigree. You have seen what noble womanhood can +do for itself, what a dignified thing honest labour is. Do you +remember what I said to you the night that you came to London, Mary?" + +"I recollect," Mary whispered softly. "You prophesied for me. You said +that I should be better and purer for the sacrifice. You said that I +should see life as it is, and learn what a poor thing the family glory +was by the side of humanity. And I have learned the lesson, Ralph, I +am quite content now to work for my living; I am trying to forget +Dashwood and all its glories. Why, I have even become accustomed to +London bread and butter." + +The girl burst into a merry laugh in which Ralph joined from pure +sympathy. Here was the model wife for which he had been looking. + +"That is important," he said, "but there is another lesson that I am +anxious about. You have become a child of the people now, a recruit in +the great army of labour. But with your new womanhood has there not +come another and sweeter dream to you, Mary? Have you not pictured +someone by your side to help in the struggle?" + +The girl's face flushed crimson, but she bravely met Ralph's eyes. + +"Yes," she said frankly, "we were only talking about it last night. +Oh, I have gone a long way indeed since I saw you last." + +"That is good to hear. And when the right man comes along you will not +refuse him simply because he does not have a long pedigree?" + +"Please do not say too much about it," Mary pleaded. "If you only knew +how dreadfully ashamed you make me feel! As if it mattered, as if +anything mattered, so long as the woman loved the man and he was +worthy of her affection. There, Ralph, do you need me to say any more +than that! A man does not need a long pedigree or a fine estate to be +a gentleman. But, really, you are making me false to my creed, and I +shall not tell you anything else till I have seen Mrs. Speed. This is +the house. Will you wait outside?" + +"Certainly not," Ralph said, "I have something to say to Mrs. Speed as +well as you. You will perhaps be surprised to hear that she is an old +friend of my father's. Come along." + +Mrs. Speed came up from the kitchen very hot and very red, and +inclined to be angry at being disturbed at this time of the day. She +began to explain volubly to Mary why the boxes had not yet been sent +off. In the hall a man was calling for the landlady. She broke off in +her exclamations and stared at Ralph. She seemed terribly agitated, +her face grew white, her eyes astonished, as Ralph held out his hand. + +"A ghost!" she said, "a ghost from the grave. And yet it could not be; +after all these years, it is impossible that the form of--well, what +is it?" + +The man in the hall came swaggering into the room. He glanced at +Ralph, and would have vanished had not the latter detained him. + +"This is an unexpected meeting," he said. "I did not expect to see you +here so far away from home, Sir Vincent Dashwood." + +"Sir Vincent Dashwood!" Mrs. Speed cried. "Then who, sir, are _you_, +I'd like to know?" + + + + +CHAPTER XLIX. +A BOLT FROM THE BLUE + + +Just for a moment it looked as if Ralph's pretty scheme was destined +to fall to the ground. Naturally, Mary had the haziest idea of what +was taking place. She could only see that the man whom she knew as Sir +Vincent Dashwood was looking most terribly uneasy and casting +imploring glances at Mrs. Speed. + +It seemed strange that anybody should in any way be craving the good +favours of the faded-looking woman, but such was the case. If she had +had the so-called baronet's life in her hands he could not have +regarded her with more entreaty. And, as to her part, Mrs. Speed +looked from one man to the other in a dazed kind of way, as if she had +not the slightest idea what was taking place. Her face turned from red +to white and then to red again; she seemed to have some difficulty +with her breathing. + +"I--I don't understand," she gasped. "You are asking for me. It must +be wrong to say that this gentleman is Sir Vincent Dashwood." + +Ralph had recovered his equanimity by this time. His obvious course +now was to prevent Mary from guessing at the true nature of the +situation. She must not know yet. And she had been so sweet and frank +and candid with Ralph that not for the world would he have her know +the trick that had been played on her, yet. That confession would have +to come at the proper hour, with the proper setting, say the rose +garden at the dower house on a moonlight night. + +"Nevertheless, I am quite correct," he said. "I assure you that the +gentleman who has just come in is no other than Sir Vincent Dashwood, +of Dashwood Hall. As a matter of fact, I was in the fortunate position +of placing a valuable proof of his identity in his way. But the matter +has developed itself so recently that it is possible few people know +of the change." + +"Sir Vincent Dashwood!" Mrs. Speed repeated, as if the words had some +fascination for her. "And so he is Sir Vincent Dashwood. And who, sir, +may you be?" + +The question came about in the form of a challenge. Mrs. Speed moved a +step forward as if to stand between Ralph and the other man. There was +just the suggestion of protection in the movement. Ralph smiled in +reply. + +"It does not much matter who I am," he said. "As a matter of fact, my +name is Ralph Darnley, and I came to you with a message from the late +Ralph Dashwood, who, at one time, was married to your sister." + +"You knew him very well?" the woman asked in the same dazed way. + +"I knew him very well indeed," Ralph replied, "but that we will go +into presently. In the meantime, this young lady desires a word with +you. Perhaps you will be so good as to settle with her first, my +business will keep till afterwards." + +And Ralph moved off in the direction of the passage. Dashwood could do +no more than follow him in the circumstances. He looked restless and +anxious and whistled rather ostentatiously to cover his agitation. + +"Upon my word you have made it very awkward for me," he said. "I never +dreamed of seeing you here. Mrs. Speed is an old friend of yours, I +presume." + +"I have never seen her before today," Ralph said, aroused by the +eagerness of the question, "I came to bring her a message as you +heard. She appeared to be surprised to see me, but not more than she +was surprised to hear of your new dignity." + +"She didn't know it, you see," Dashwood explained. "I--I haven't told +her yet. She was very good to me in my poorer days, and I am grateful +for it. Still, she knows the truth now, and there is an end of it. Odd +that I should find you mixed up like this with quite a different phase +of my life. Don't you think so?" + +"Not at all; it is not in the least odd if you knew everything. Still, +it does not matter. You can afford to disclose your identity now." + +"But I can't," Dashwood replied, "those lawyer people are making a +great fuss. Anybody would think that they had the title and estate to +dispose of. All the family recognise my position, nobody makes the +least objection, and yet those solicitors ask for all kinds of +additional proofs. I don't half like it." + +Ralph made no reply. He knew all about the objection raised by the +family lawyers and was in a position to enlighten Dashwood's mind to a +painful degree. + +But all this would come in time; meanwhile, the puppet must play his +part in the comedy. Any further conversation was cut short by the +entrance of Mary. In a tentative kind of way Dashwood wanted to know +what she was doing here. + +"No getting away from the old faces and the old places," he said. "I +come to see Mrs. Speed, so does Mr. Darnley, and you turn up at the +same time. What are you after?" + +"It does not in the least matter," Mary said coldly. "I happened to be +staying under Mrs. Speed's roof at the time she had the misfortune to +change houses; in her hurry she took away with her certain things +belonging to me. I came to fetch them. It is very simple. Are you +quite ready to go, Mr. Darnley?" + +"I think I will come," Ralph said impulsively. "What I have to say to +Mrs. Speed will keep till another day. She seems to be very unsettled +here as yet. Perhaps you will take that message to Mrs. Speed for me, +Sir Vincent?" + +Dashwood's anxious features cleared wonderfully. His air had hitherto +been one of guarded suspicion. He had a vague idea that Ralph was +concealing something. It would be no fault of his if Mrs. Speed and +Darnley met again. + +"Certainly, certainly," he said. "Is that your cab at the door, Mary? +Let me lend you a hand with those boxes. We shall have the pleasure of +seeing you down at Dashwood before long, I hope. Independence of +spirit is all very well, but you will find your new life a little +trying after a bit. And there is always a home for you at the Hall. +Drop me a line to say when you are coming. Goodbye." + +The speaker fairly bundled Mary into the cab. Ralph followed with a +grim smile on his face. He was just as anxious to get away himself; it +would be a pity if his scheme broke down just as everything was going +on splendidly. + +"What does it all mean?" Mary demanded as the cab drove away. "What +connection is there between that man and Mrs. Speed? And why did she +look at you as if you had been some accusing ghost? And why was our +friend so afraid that Mrs. Speed should know his new title?" + +"What a list of questions!" Ralph laughed. "Would you mind if I +deferred the reply for a few days? Do you suspect that anything is +wrong?" + +"Of course I do," Mary exclaimed. "That woman has some guilty +knowledge on her mind. So has Sir Vincent Dashwood. And you looked +angry and confused as he came in. I know that Mrs. Speed came +originally from our part, that she is the sister of Ralph Dashwood's +first wife. She knows all about the family quarrel and the tragedy +that followed. And she is in possession of certain papers that Vincent +Dashwood needs." + +"How do you know that?" Ralph asked. + +"I overheard the conversation at Keppel Terrace. Vincent Dashwood came +here to get those papers; I heard him say so. And he is at yonder +house today for the same purpose. If that man turns out to be an +impostor, why, my father----" + +"I implore you not to build up on that," Ralph said warmly, "pray +don't. Your father will never be Sir George Dashwood. If you come back +to the Hall again in the same capacity as before, your experience----" + +Mary laughed good-naturedly. Her face cleared; she discerned exactly +what was passing in the mind of her companion. + +"Very well," she said, "I will dismiss that contingency from my mind. +Notwithstanding, I should dearly like to come back into my kingdom +again. But you need not be afraid that I should revert to the old +order of things. The change in me is permanent; the old pride and +coolness have gone; I have learned to love and feel for my kind. Do +you know what I would do if the property were mine? I would turn the +dower house into a retreat for broken-down artists and authors and the +like, where they could regain their strength and rest at no expense to +themselves. Oh, I would do so many things to render the lives of +deserving people happy." + +Mary's cheeks glowed and her blue eyes sparkled with a tenderness that +Ralph had never seen in them before. There was soul in the girl's face +now, the soft expression without which woman's beauty counts for +nothing. And from the bottom of his heart Ralph was glad. It was hard +work to keep from Mary the fact that the kingdom she so longed for was +in her grasp. + +"It does me good to hear you speak like that," he said. "No, I must +not come in, for I have a great deal to do. Give my kind regards to +Connie, and say that I shall call the next time I am in town. I am +very anxious to see Miss Cameron also. But you say she is coming down +to the dower house on Saturday. Goodbye." + +Mary's hand lay in Ralph's for a moment and their eyes met. And then +the girl knew that Ralph still loved her, and the knowledge thrilled +her with a sudden happiness. She did not dare to stop and analyse her +feelings, but deep down in her heart she knew that when the time came +Ralph would have his own way. + + + + +CHAPTER L. +HARD PUT TO IT + + +With a sigh of passionate relief Vincent Dashwood watched the cab +drive away. He hardly knew what he had to fear, and yet he discovered +the fact that he had got rid of some great danger. True, Ralph Darnley +had more or less betrayed his secret to Mrs. Speed, but then that +discovery might have been made at any moment. + +Dashwood called impatiently to the tenant of the house. No reply came. +He walked into the dining-room muttering to himself. Mrs. Speed stood +there by the fireplace, her hands clasped convulsively together, her +face hard and grey. Once in his life Dashwood had been in court and +heard a woman sentenced to death. It came back to him now that the +face of the criminal had looked exactly like Mrs. Speed's. + +"What on earth is the matter with you?" he asked brutally. + +"Wait a moment," the woman said hoarsely. "I was thinking, I was +trying to get it all clear in my brain. It seems impossible, +altogether preposterous. He told me that you were Sir Vincent +Dashwood. He wasn't mad, was he?" + +"Perhaps not," Dashwood grinned, "but I shall think you are if you go +on like this. I didn't dare to tell you at first because you do such +foolish things. You are quite good enough to have written to the old +girl and told her everything. It is a very fortunate thing that Lady +Dashwood regards you as being no longer in the world." + +"Is it? Are you sure that Lady Dashwood thinks me dead?" + +"Of course she does. I got that out of her by judicious pumping. Now +that Ralph Darnley has given me away I can tell you the whole truth. I +got sick of plodding in the City on small pay and hard work. One or +two things you told me gave me an idea of the game. I got hold of all +those letters and things and learned them by heart. Gradually, the +whole story was mine. Then I pretended to you that I had something to +do in the north. I didn't go north at all; I went down to Dashwood and +introduced myself to the old lady. She asked me a lot of questions, +and I replied to them satisfactorily. Of course, she did not recognise +me as the boy I was when we left the parish seventeen years ago. And +she put old Slight on me, too. Well, I satisfied old Slight, too, +though at the first go-off he also regarded me as an impostor. Still, +I hadn't the nerve to go the whole thing, and pretended that I desired +to wait till the old lady was dead. And she was so much in love with +the girl who was here just now that she allowed me to have my own way. +It was only when I looked like getting into trouble over a charge of +burning the Hall down that I had to speak. And blest if Ralph Darnley +did not come forward and produce the very marriage certificate that I +needed. It was as easy as falling off a house. Everybody gave way to +me without a struggle, I stepped into the estate and the title. That +is not more than a week ago. The only people who made a fuss were the +lawyers. That is why I came to you for those letters. But I shall soon +stop the mouths of those old landsharks, and then we shall have a good +time. No more dodging about and worrying over your rent in the future, +mother." + +But Mrs. Speed shared no joy in the prospect of her emancipation. The +grey look had not left her face and the strained terror was still in +her eyes. + +"I didn't mind it," she said. "At any rate, I have tried to be honest. +And so you claimed the estate of the Dashwoods on the ground that you +are the son of Ralph Dashwood, and all the time Ralph Darnley, as he +calls himself, was looking on. Has the man any bitter grudge against +you?" + +"Why should he? I never saw him in my life till a little less than a +month ago." + +"And he permits this farce to go on! Why? What strange scheme has he +in his mind? Oh, why did he not turn up before, and prevent this great +temptation from being forced on you?" + +The listener stared in astonishment at Mrs. Speed. A feeling of danger +troubled him. He caught the woman almost roughly by the shoulder and +shook her. + +"What is the matter with you?" he demanded. "Why can't you speak out? +Who is this Ralph Darnley that you should be in such mortal fear of +him?" + +"There is no Ralph Darnley," Mrs. Speed cried. "That man is Ralph +Dashwood, the son of the Dashwood who married my sister and then +disappeared. How do I know? Why, he is the very image of his father, +as the latter was as a young fellow. Directly he came into the room +just now I recognised him. You could have knocked me down with a +feather. I have a portrait of Ralph Dashwood upstairs--I only turned +it out last night. And when I show you that photo you will have no +doubts as to who this Ralph Darnley is. Why he is allowing you to +stand in his shoes is a mystery. When he comes to declare his identity +he will make very short work of _you_, Vincent." + +"Go up and get that photograph," the listener said hoarsely, "I'll get +to the bottom of this." + +The photograph was a faded one, but there was no comfort in it for the +man who chose to call himself Vincent Dashwood. It was exactly as his +mother had said. Making due allowances for the change in fashion and +dress, it was Ralph Darnley who smiled out of the photograph into +Vincent Speed's terrified eyes. + +"You're right," he said, "right as rain. No use disputing the thing in +the face of evidence like that. But what is that chap waiting for, why +is he making a cat's paw of me like this? No wonder that he could +supply me with a copy of the marriage certificate of his father's +second matrimonial venture when he was the offspring of the alliance. +The question is, How much longer is he going to keep me on the string? +Still, nobody else knows. The best thing I can do is to push a +mortgage through and make myself secure with as much money as I can +lay my hands on. Perhaps I may manage to bamboozle Lady Dashwood out +of a bit more. At any rate, she does not know anything of this +business, for----" + +"Fool," Mrs. Speed cried, "of course she knows. Hasn't she seen Ralph +Darnley?" + +"Well, yes, he seems to be a prime favourite at the dower house." + +"Naturally. Why, as soon as her ladyship set eyes upon the young +fellow who chooses to call himself Ralph Darnley she would recognise +him. Do you suppose that you could deceive a mother over a thing like +that? She recognised him instantly. So did old Slight. So would +anybody who knew his father." + +"Then why on earth didn't he kick me into the street?" + +"Who can tell? Perhaps he came back to see how things were before he +disclosed himself. At any rate, he has fooled you. Oh, why do you stay +here like this, when at this very moment there may be a warrant out +for your arrest?" + +Vincent Speed, to call him by his proper name, started and changed +colour. It seemed hard to lose everything just as the whole world was +in his grasp. At any rate, he would not go empty away, he would bluff +it a little longer. Let him have a week or so, and then the foe could +do as he pleased. It would be an easy matter to raise a vast sum of +money on the family estates. + +"I can't go back now," he said, "I must carry on the game till I have +made it worth while. And it is a strange thing to me if Lady Dashwood +knows anything. She is too simple-minded to be able to keep up the +deception. She would show it in her manner if she had made the +discovery that I am an impostor. She is just the same to me as she +ever was. Swells of that sort are not given to conceal their feelings. + +"Oh, are they not?" Mrs. Speed said bitterly, "I know better. They can +stoop like the rest of us when it suits their book to do so. Well, go +your own way, and see what you can do, Vincent. It is just possible +that when the time comes, I can find a way to win Lady Dashwood over +to our side; at least, I can use her as an advocate for clemency as +far as you are concerned." + +"What do you mean by that?" Speed asked eagerly. + +"I will not tell you," Mrs. Speed said with some show of firmness, "I +have let you learn too much already. And the secret is not entirely +mine. Now you go your way, and let me hear from you how things are +going. But they can only go in one way. Badly as you have used me, bad +son as you are, I can't forget that you _are_ my son. It is no fine +thing to be a woman----men never suffer as we do." + +Vincent Speed went away with a troubled mind and an uneasy feeling +that some disaster was hanging over him. The more he thought over the +disclosures of the past hour, the more they puzzled him. Well, he +would have to struggle on a little longer, until he had a large sum of +money at his disposal. He drove down to Bedford Row, where the office +of the family solicitors was situated, and sent in his card to the +head of the firm. The latter received him with somewhat cold +politeness--he would like to know what he could do for Sir Vincent. + +Speed went on to explain. But no response came from the clean-shaven +man on the far side of the table. Mr. Morley shook his head. + +"We can't do it," he said. "In the present circumstances it is +impossible. Of course, we have many clients who would be prepared to +lend money on the Dashwood property, but we are not yet satisfied as +to--er--the legal aspect of your claim. Till that point is cleared up +to our satisfaction, we must decline both to arrange the mortgage or +even to part with the deeds relating to the property." + +Speed protested, but protested in vain. And nothing moved the +iron-faced man from his purpose; he might have been a statue for all +he heeded those threats and expostulations. + + + + +CHAPTER LI. +COLD COMFORT + + +In an aimless kind of way Speed stepped into the street and turned his +steps in the direction of the City. It had occurred to him almost in +the light of an inspiration that Horace Mayfield might be of use at +this juncture. Mayfield's office was full of clients; the place had an +air of prosperity. But the head of the firm looked tired and jaded as +Speed came into his private room; the fingers on his cigarette shook +terribly. + +"Sit down," Mayfield said curtly, "I have been wondering what had +become of you. I have been expecting to hear about that sum of money +we spoke of. Now that you have come so easily into the estate there +can be no difficulty. The man who calls himself Ralph Darnley +evidently is not aware of his own identity." + +"Oh, isn't he?" Speed sneered, "that's just where you make the +mistake. I have had no end of an eye-opener this morning, in fact, +what you might call a regular staggerer. It came from my mother. I +wish that I had taken her into my confidence from the first. But +perhaps I had better tell you all about it." + +"It would perhaps be as well," Mayfield said grimly. "Go on." + +Speed proceeded to tell his story. Long before he had finished +Mayfield's grey face became still more ashen and the fingers on his +cigarette trembled visibly. + +"So the ship has foundered," he said. "I've got a shrewd idea as to +the game that Darnley is playing. I took that man for a fool. As a +matter of fact, he is the cleverest chap I ever came across. To be +candid, I did his father out of a lot of money. I played much the same +game with Sir George Dashwood. And it seemed to me that Ralph Darnley +was going to take it lying down. He made no face; he took no +proceedings. And then it came upon me like a thunderbolt. At the time +he was working up a case against me. He put it into the hands of the +cleverest firm of criminal lawyers in London. He arranged such a +damning lot of facts before me that I was bound to sacrifice +everything to save a prosecution. I scraped the money together from +all kinds of sources. I robbed other clients to get it. At the moment +all my speculations go wrong, of course. I'm in a desperate hole, +Speed; there isn't a man in London who is in such a hole today. If I +don't get £30,000 by Monday I shall have to bolt--and there is no safe +place to bolt to nowadays. You will have to get me this money on +mortgage." + +"But I can't," Speed protested. "I went to the family lawyers just +now, and they refused to have anything to do with it. Said they were +by no means satisfied as to my legal position. They went so far as to +declare they not only decline to raise money on the estate, but they +refuse to give up the deeds." + +Something like a groan came from Mayfield's lips, but his busy brain +was working all the time. He saw where the difficulty lay. With Ralph +out of the way he could, and would, crush Speed like a fly. He would +expose the impostor without mercy, and then things would revert to the +old order as they were before Ralph Darnley appeared. + +An accident to Ralph Darnley! The real owner of the estate out of the +way! Properly manipulated, this might mean the recovery of that money +from Darnley's solicitors. It would at any rate mean the return of +George Dashwood to his own once more, the putting of the screw on +Mary. The idea whirled in Mayfield's mind like a dazzling wheel. He +did not dare to look at Speed; he was afraid of the tale his eyes +might tell. + +"I must have time to think this over," he said. "Meanwhile, you had +better return to Dashwood as if nothing out of the common had +happened. I'll come down and dine with you tomorrow night and stay +till the morning. Then get hold of this so-called Darnley, and see if +you can pump any further information out of him. If you could possibly +induce him to dine with us so much the better. Only, if I were you, I +should not say that you had asked me. I've got a scheme working in my +mind, but it is not quite safe as yet, so we need not discuss it." + +"All right," Speed said moodily, "you are a much cleverer chap than I +am, and I shall rely on you to find some way out of the trouble. When +I think what is slipping through my fingers like this, I could commit +murder." + +Speed spoke vehemently, with a voice that rasped hoarsely. Mayfield +started, to find that his thoughts and Speed's were running in such +parallel grooves. He made a gesture of impatience, indicating that he +should like to be alone. Speed lounged out, lunched freely, and, with +the courage that is born of wine, took his way to the station with a +resolve to return to Dashwood without delay. + +Everything seemed just the same there; there was no suggestion that +anybody knew of the deceit which had been practised on the old house. +Even Slight appeared to be more respectful than usual, but this was +all prearranged; Ralph had travelled down by the same train as Speed, +and Slight was fresh from an interview with the man whom he called his +master. It was after tea that Speed went over to the dower house. His +heart was beating a little faster than usual; he felt his colour come +and go as Lady Dashwood came into the garden with a basket and a pair +of scissors in her hand. Her greeting was cold and formal as usual; +but Speed could not detect any change in her manner. + +"Let me hold the basket for you," he said graciously. "You are going +to get some roses?" + +"Yes," Lady Dashwood replied, "I prefer to arrange my own flowers. And +I have a young friend coming to stay with me tomorrow, an acquaintance +of Mary's." + +So far all was well, for the speaker did not refer to Mary as Miss +Dashwood; it was evident to Speed that he was still regarded as one of +the family. He wondered if Lady Dashwood had any idea as to his real +identity. + +"I saw Mary today," he said. "She had been lodging with a woman I +know, a Mrs. Speed. She has been very unfortunate of late, and----" + +"I know Mrs. Speed quite well," Lady Dashwood replied. "Her father +was a tenant on the estate many years ago. And I have heard all about +the misfortune. In fact, I was in London yesterday, and called upon +Mrs. Speed, who had written to me. What is the matter?" + +"A thorn from one of the roses," Speed said in some confusion, "in my +finger." + +He was staggered at the information delivered in Lady Dashwood's +quiet, level voice. Why had his mother not told him? Why had she +withheld this fact from him? Perhaps she had forgotten it in the +agitation of the startling disclosures of the morning. But Speed took +fresh heart of grace from the news. That Lady Dashwood was not talking +at him he felt certain; her voice was too matter of fact for that. + +"That's a strange thing," Speed continued to say in a fairly steady +voice. "I did not know it before. Let me get the roses for you from +the top of the tree, they are so much finer. Have you seen anything of +Ralph Darnley lately?" + +"Not for a day or two," Lady Dashwood replied. "He has been in London, +but I believe that he is coming back some time today, and I should not +be surprised if he came over here later." + +As a matter of fact Ralph put in an appearance before the basket of +roses was filled. If the suspicions of Speed had been rocked to sleep, +they were awakened now, when he saw the way in which Lady Dashwood +smiled at the newcomer. There was real affection in her glance; the +pressure of her hand was warm and clinging. + +"So you have come back again," she said, "I have quite missed you. And +I have felt so lonely all day. Won't you take pity on me and dine with +me tonight?" + +Ralph expressed his gratification at the request. There was no fault +to find with his manner towards Speed. The latter was puzzled and +worried. + +"You have not dined with me yet," he said. "What do you say to coming +in tomorrow at half-past seven? Positively, I won't take a refusal." + +Ralph hesitated just for a moment. Perhaps a feeling of curiosity +moved him, for he inclined his head presently with a smile. + +It was hard work to keep up appearances with this man, but it was not +going to be for much longer. Ralph had made up his mind to that as +soon as he had parted with Mary that morning. + +"I shall be pleased," he said, "Lady Dashwood, won't you let me come +into the house and help to arrange those flowers? I have a woman's +weakness for that sort of thing. You should see how the roses grow in +California." + +The pair walked towards the house and Speed lounged away. On the whole +he had no cause to be dissatisfied with the afternoon's work. He was +still puzzled and uneasy, but Lady Dashwood's manner had gone a long +way to reassure him. But he was frightened over Lady Dashwood's visit +to his mother. He was inclined to be bitter against the latter because +she had not told him. The problem still filled his mind as he reached +the Hall and stumbled into the dining-room. He poured himself out a +large glass of whisky and soda, and took a cigarette from the silver +box on the table. And there on the table beside the cigarettes lay a +telegram. Speed tore it open and rapidly cast his eye over the +contents:-- + +"Make no mistake as to Darnley tomorrow night. He must dine +with you. All arrangements made and plan complete. Wire reply +immediately.--Mayfield." + +Speed chuckled to himself as he filled in the reply form. If Mayfield +had laid his plans after his own fashion then success was bound to +follow. + + + + +CHAPTER LII. +THE SPIDER'S WEB + + +Speed rose next morning with a sense of his dangers and +responsibilities. He had sat up late the night before, thinking things +over to the accompaniment of much whisky and soda. Therefore, his head +was heavy and his eyes were dull as he crept down late to breakfast. +He was inclined to take the gloomiest view of the situation; the +cheerfulness of Mr. George Dashwood irritated him. + +Whatever Dashwood's faults were, he did not number dissipation of +that degrading kind amongst them. He looked cheerful enough as he +sat before the open window reading the paper and smoking an +after-breakfast cigarette. He greeted Speed heartily. + +"Why do you smoke here?" the latter growled. "You know I can't stand +the smell of tobacco before I've had my breakfast. Go outside and +finish it." + +"All right, my dear fellow," Dashwood said politely. There was +something almost cringing in his manner. "Sorry to annoy you. Fine +morning." + +The speaker appeared anxious to please. He wanted to ignore the +unpleasant feeling that Speed despised him. There was little chance +now of burning incense on the altar of family pride; Speed took care +of that. He was at no pains to conceal the fact that he regarded +Dashwood as a pensioner, dependent upon his bounty, and to be treated +accordingly. Dashwood had fallen a long way indeed when he accepted +the hospitality of his supplanter. + +"What a confounded nuisance that old beggar is," he muttered, heedless +of the fact that Slight stood by the sideboard. "I shall have to get +rid of him altogether. If he had the spirit of a man he would not stay +here. And they talk of the pride of the Dashwoods. Slight, why aren't +there any curried eggs and some devilled kidneys? Am I always to be +telling you about it? What a fine thing it is to be a pampered, lazy +lout of a man-servant. What are you gaping at?" + +"The eggs are under the silver cover, sir," Slight replied. "The +kidneys are here over the spirit lamp, sir. The rest of your remarks +are unnecessary, sir." + +"Oh, are they? Did you behave in this insolent way in Sir Ralph's +time?" + +"Sir Ralph was a gentleman, sir. He knew how to speak to his +dependents." + +"Oh, did he?" Speed roared, "I suppose I don't. If I like to swear at +my confounded flunkeys I'll do it. They can take it out in extra +wages. If this kind of thing goes on we shall part, Slight." + +"Very good, sir," Slight responded. "You have only to say the word. +You may be interested to hear that only last night I had great +difficulty in preventing the whole of the servants from resigning in a +body." + +Speed had no more to say. He was half afraid of a quarrel to the end +with Slight. The latter knew too much. The studied insolence that +underlay his respectful manner proved that. He moved about the room +now with the air of a man who is depriving himself of the decencies of +life. He poured out the coffee in a lordly way, as if under protest. +Speed made advances towards conciliation. + +"Mr. Mayfield is coming down tonight," he said, "he will dine here and +probably stay till tomorrow. Tell the housekeeper this. Mr. Darnley +will dine here also. I should like the cook to be sure of something +extra. I can leave you to see to the wines." + +"Mr. Darnley dining here, sir?" Slight asked with a rising inflection +of voice. "Coming here tonight to meet that--I mean, Mr. Mayfield?" + +"Well, why not? Any objection to make, Slight? Any little alteration +to suit you? You have only to mention it." + +Slight muttered a hasty apology. He had come very near to betraying +himself. As he looked into Speed's bloodshot eyes he saw something +there that filled his heart with a sudden fear. For the old man knew +everything; there was not a single move in the game with which he was +not acquainted. + +But Speed had forgotten all about Slight and his little slip. A small +liqueur and a cigarette put him on good terms with himself once more. +It was a beautiful day, too, with a soft breeze and brilliant +sunshine. Across the park the deer were moving in a dappled line; the +fine old gardens were looking their very best. As Speed paced up and +down the terrace one gardener and another touched their hats to him. +It filled him with a feeling of pleasure--flattered self-importance. +It was worth the risk to be the head of a place like this, to feel +that it was all his own. And only two years before he had been the +slave of the pen, the toady of a sweating employer. + +Speed felt that he could never give it up again. In his heart he was a +murderer, so far as Ralph Darnley was concerned. He had read somewhere +that there were several different kinds of poisons that left no trace +behind. One of these was the virus of the cobra. No doubt that could +be obtained in London, where money could procure anything. A drop of +that, and Ralph Darnley was a dead man. Nobody would be any the wiser, +it would be assumed that he had died of heart failure. A comparatively +small outlay might procure the poison. It would be worth while going +to London to see. + +In these circumstances Speed knew that he would not have hesitated. He +really could not give up the place. He had always naturally been of +extravagant, luxurious tastes, and now he was in a position to gratify +them to the full. The new West End tailor grovelled before him; +jewellers and wine and cigar merchants laid their stocks at his feet; +he had only to choose the list. If he rang the bell a score of +servants were ready to wait on him; the costliest wines were at his +disposal. + +No, it would be impossible to give it up. Speed's mind kept harping on +the matter of those poisons. He must try to find out where they could +be procured. Once Ralph Darnley was out of the way, nobody would +trouble him any more. Once that event happened nobody would dispute +his claim. But then perhaps Mayfield had an idea. Mayfield was a +clever, long-headed chap, who was not disposed to be scrupulous. On +the whole, perhaps it would be as well to leave things to Mayfield. + +There would be plenty of time to discuss matters before dinner. There +was more than time as it turned out, for Mayfield arrived unexpectedly +before luncheon. He looked drawn and worried, Speed thought, but there +was a grim determination in his eye that Speed liked. Mr. Dashwood met +Mayfield in the friendliest possible manner. If he felt any disgust +towards the newcomer he disguised it very effectively. He went off +presently under a strong hint that his host and Mayfield had some +important business to discuss. He was going as far as Longtown, he +said, and should not be back before dinner. + +"That's the way to get rid of him," Speed said as he lay back in his +chair, a large cigar between his lips. Slight had placed the wine on +the table and vanished. "What a useless old encumbrance he is about +the house. I shall have to get rid of him, Mayfield. When I wrote my +generous offer I hoped that Mary would come, too. Those confounded +servants want keeping in hand, and, besides, nobody seems to care +about calling here, so long as there is nothing in the shape of a +mistress about the place." + +"Everybody has been wise," Mayfield said cynically. "Anyway, I am glad +you have not got rid of old Dashwood yet. He is going to be a puppet +in the play. We shall be able to make a very effective use of him +before the day is out. Nothing happened yet, no kind of move on the +part of the foe, I suppose?" + +"No," Speed explained, "nothing. I saw Lady Dashwood last night. She +treated me just in the same way as usual, which is all the more +strange if she knows who I really am." + +"I don't suppose for a moment that she knows who you really are," +Mayfield said. "She may know who you are not--and that's her grandson. +But if Darnley was out of the way things would be quite different. +Nobody would worry you any longer. How did you manage to get him to +come and dine here tonight?" + +"The thing worked out easily enough. I simply asked him and he said +yes. He hesitated just for a moment, and then he smiled in a queer +kind of way. But one thing you may be sure of--he would not have come +had he known that he was going to meet you." + +"Perhaps not," Mayfield grinned. "Shall we dine here tonight?" + +The question was put so abruptly that Speed started. He could see that +something evil was brooding in the mind of his companion. Mayfield's +eyes were taking in the arrangements of the room as a general might +survey a field of battle. There were three long windows in the room, +leading to a kind of balcony outside. In front of one of the windows +was a double screen in carved oak, which shielded the window and made +it into a kind of alcove. Mayfield noted all this with grim +satisfaction, for a smile played about the corners of his hard mouth. + +"I asked you if we dined here tonight?" he said again. + +"Oh, yes. Why not? We generally dine here--it is so much more pleasant +a room than the big dining hall. Why do you ask?" + +"We will come to that presently," Mayfield replied. "I take it that +those windows open to the terrace outside. Is there a seat behind that +screen? I mean a seat that one could lounge in." + +"A big armchair," Speed whispered. "What are you driving at?" + + + + +CHAPTER LIII. +THE WEB TIGHTENS + + +"We shall get to the point all in good time," Mayfield said +deliberately. "That screen forms a kind of cosy corner and entrance to +the terrace. If a good dinner gave you a headache, and you could not +stand the light, you might do worse than sit in the big chair and +smoke there whilst the others sat around the table. I planned it all +out coming along, with the recollection of this room in my mind. But +the geographical situation is even better than I anticipated." + +"What on earth are you driving at?" Speed asked with nervous +irritation. + +Mayfield laughed. There was something hard and grating in his mirth. + +"Well, I'll put it in the form of a parable if you like," he said. +"Suppose that you and I found ourselves in a very tight place. It +wants no imagination to conceive that, you say. Very well, the +situation is granted. We are in the warm corner, and the same man is +keeping us there. I need not say I am alluding to Ralph Darnley. If I +don't get him out of the way, I am a ruined man. Another few days, and +I shall have to fly the country in disgrace; I shall be brought back +and put on my trial. The result of that trial is a foregone conclusion +and society will be deprived of my presence for some years to come. My +only hope is in help of a substantial nature from you." + +"That's all right," Speed whispered hoarsely, "you shall have as much +as you like, if you will only show me the way to raise the money." + +"That's precisely what I am going to do. Darnley must be got of the +way. Then you will have all the money you need. Listen to me. Darnley +dines here tonight. He will not stay late because of my presence. When +the dinner is practically finished you will plead a headache, and go +and sit in that big chair with the window open. From time to time you +will put in a remark to show that you are still there. When Darnley +rises to go I shall walk as far as the hall with him and help him on +with his coat. It may happen that he will smoke a cigar that I shall +select for him--a fresh cigar to carry him home. A few whiffs of that +cigar will make him very giddy, for my cigars are strong. I have made +arrangements for a message to come to Darnley about half past ten +saying that Lady Dashwood desires to see him at the dower house +tonight. + +"Now, if my memory serves me correctly, the quickest way to the dower +house is along the terrace here. Darnley will go that way. He will be +very giddy and sleepy. You are in the alcove whilst I am talking to +old Dashwood. This is where Dashwood comes in, where he will be a +witness for me. As Darnley staggers along, you get out on to the +terrace. You happen to have a loaded stick handy. I don't wish to +suggest any connection between the two events, but it is just possible +that Darnley will be found in the park tomorrow morning, with his head +split open and his pockets empty. That would be a fortunate accident +for us." + +"Yes," Speed said with chattering teeth, "it--it would. But I don't +quite----" + +"Oh, the rest is quite easy. I call to you directly I fancy things are +safe, and you come into the room grumbling at the light. I only want +you to answer a question, and so prove that you have been in the room +all the time. We don't lose sight of one another after that, not till +everybody has gone to bed, when I slip out and place the body so that +it can be found to look as if robbery had been the motive. Can you do +it?" + +Speed nodded without reply. The room had grown suddenly dark, for a +thunderstorm had come up from the west. There was a lurid flash of +lightning followed by a clap of thunder, and then the rain came down +in torrents. It was only a matter of ten minutes before the light came +back again. Speed nodded once more. + +"All right," he whispered, "I am a fairly powerful man, and +physically, I have nothing to fear from Ralph Darnley. Besides, you +say he will not be in a condition. . . . It's a dreadful thing to +think of, Mayfield, but I can't give this up. I really couldn't go +back to the old life of drudgery again. Only please don't revert to +the subject. Let us have another glass of wine and forget all about it +for the time being." + +The afternoon wore on; evening came at length, and presently with it, +Ralph Darnley. He entered the big dining-room where the others awaited +him. His easy manner changed as he caught sight of Mayfield. Just for +the moment he felt a desire to walk out of the room and leave the +house. He had not expected an insult like this. But, on the other +hand, he had asked no questions; he had accepted the invitation as +much out of curiosity as anything else, and, besides, Mary's father +was there. And Ralph had been in more questionable circumstances +before now. + +"I think you know Mayfield," Speed said carelessly. + +"We have met on several occasions," Ralph said quietly, "we have had +business relations together. But I hardly expected the pleasure." + +"Well, you have nothing to regret as far as the business relations are +concerned," Mayfield said with a laugh. "Still, it is possible to +forget all about that for the moment. My friend, Sp--I mean, Sir +Vincent, has asked me to stay here for a night. Upon my word, he is a +man to be envied! It isn't often that a place like this tumbles into a +man's lap. With most of us virtue is its own reward." + +Ralph made some suitable reply. He was annoyed and angry with himself +for coming. But there was no getting out of it now; he would have to +go on till half-past ten at least. It was a relief in its way when +Slight came in with the announcement that dinner was ready. That meal +would occupy two hours at least. + +There was everything set out just as it had been in the old days, and +yet there was a subtle difference. The house lacked the presence of a +mistress; it needed the refining influence of a woman. And, in his +mind's eye, Ralph saw the woman there, smiling and tender at the head +of the table, her eyes looking into his. It was worth all the +discomfort and unpleasantness of such a meal to know that the time +would not be long now. The puppets had nearly finished their parts, +and the hour for their removal was close at hand. + +But the dinner dragged all the same; only Mr. Dashwood made spasmodic +efforts at keeping up the nagging conversation. He was fitfully gay, +perhaps he noted the look of displeasure in Ralph's eyes. + +The cloth was removed at length and the wines sparkled red and white +under the soft, shaded lamps. Mayfield slipped out of the room +presently under pretence that he had forgotten his cigar case. +Directly he entered he turned to Ralph. + +"A message has come for you," he said. "Lady Dashwood would like to +see you at the dower house on your way home. She will not detain you +long." + +"In that case I must not be late," Ralph replied. He was glad of the +excuse to get away a little sooner than he had expected. "What is the +matter with our host?" + +For Speed had started, the cigar fell from his fingers. The false +message was a signal to him that the tragedy had begun, and he was +expected to play his part when the time came. He placed his hand to +his head and groaned. + +"A bilious headache," he said, "they give me a lot of trouble from +time to time. This one has been coming on all day. The light hurts my +eyes fearfully. If you will excuse me, I'll go and sit in the shade +behind the screen. I shall be able to hear all that is going on from +there." + +Ralph murmured his sympathy. All he wanted to do now was to get away. +He was heartily sorry that he had come at all. Half an hour slipped +away, half an hour's talk about mining speculation, to which Mr. +Dashwood listened eagerly. Everything in the nature of gambling always +appealed to him. + +"I am afraid I must be going," Ralph said. "It is necessary for me to +get away early if I am to see Lady Dashwood tonight." + +"Don't go without a cigar," Mayfield urged as he proffered his case. +"There are no finer cigars in the world, though I say it myself. Do +try one." + +Ralph held out his hand for the case. It certainly was an excellent +cigar. There was something very soothing about it. Mayfield followed +Ralph into the hall, only to return a moment later with the +information that the visitor had departed. Then came the sound of a +movement from behind the screen, followed by what might have been a +moan of pain. + +"Poor chap," Mayfield said with ready sympathy. "Now let me go on, Mr. +Dashwood, and explain to you what I meant about those South African +shares. I want to prove to you what a good thing they are, if only you +have the pluck to take them and hold them." + +"Provided that you've got the money," Dashwood laughed, "but, as you +are aware, I have no money; fortune has been very unkind to me lately. +Still, on the other hand--but you do not seem to be listening to me." + +"I--I beg your pardon," Mayfield stammered, "I am listening to +something outside. Let us ask Sir Vincent if his head is well enough +to offer an opinion. I say, Dashwood, would you mind coming here for a +moment. Your relation here says----" + +"All right," came a little voice from behind the screen, "I'm coming. +Why can't you leave a fellow alone? I declare I'm shaking from head to +foot with cold. Let us sit here out of the draught. . . . I'm fairly +stung with the cold." + +The speaker's teeth were chattering, his face was a ghastly blue +colour. And, for a long time afterwards, nobody spoke besides Mr. +George Dashwood! + + + + +CHAPTER LIV. +"EYES CLEARER GROWN--" + + +"I'm glad she's gone," Connie exclaimed as the cab drove away and the +last flutter of Grace's handkerchief had vanished. "Let us hope she +will have a happy time with Lady Dashwood. But why didn't your dear +relative fetch her as arranged? Why that telegram? I hope there is +nothing wrong at the dower house?" + +"Of course there is nothing wrong," Mary laughed. "It is not like you +to imagine things. What is the matter with you this morning, Connie?" + +Connie remarked tearfully that she did not know. For once in a way she +was on the verge of tears. Perhaps she missed Grace, for her manner +had changed, directly the cab was gone. + +"Now I am going to know all about it," said Mary. "You are the dearest +friend I have ever made as yet, and it hurts me for you to keep a +secret from me." + +"What a change!" Connie said, a smile flashing through her tears. +"What has become of the cold, reserved girl that I met some days ago +at Victoria Station? Well, I'll tell you what is the matter. You know +that I lost those sketches the night Mrs. Speed went away and left us +in the lurch. They were badly needed, and I could not supply them. +They had to fake up some old blocks and it caused no end of trouble. +The long and short of it is that last night I had a curt intimation +that I need not expect to get any more work for the _Wheezer_. It +means that my poor little weekly income has vanished for the present. +It's very hard just at a time when----" + +"Oh, my dear," Mary cried, "how dreadful! And this is why you kept up +before----" + +"Before Grace. I could not possibly tell her, it would have been +hateful to spoil her pleasure like that. But it has been hard work, +Mary. Two or three times today I have had to struggle to keep from +positive blubbering. I hate to snivel, but I suppose we are all prone +to that at times. What to do I don't know." + +Mary looked up from the packs of postcards she was engaged upon. + +"Please don't worry," she said, "it isn't as if we were penniless. I +am certain that you will get something to do before long." + +"My dear girl, don't forget that the rent and the bread and butter go +on just the same. And don't forget either that whilst the grass grows +the steed starves." + +"Not when the other steed has plenty of oats to spare," Mary laughed. +"What do you think of that for an epigram? If painting fails, I shall +take to literature. I'm quite sure that I shall be as good an author +as an artist. Don't think me hard or unsympathetic, Connie. I know how +good you are, I know that you would cheerfully share your last +shilling with me, little as I deserve it. And I am going to do the +same by you. I have some three pounds left of the money I borrowed +from that convenient relative at the pawnshop, and I calculate that I +can raise quite two hundred pounds altogether. Within a short time you +will find fresh work to do." + +Connie's tears were falling freely now. The burst of grief seemed to +do her good, for the sunny April smile flashed out again. + +"You shall do as you like, dearest," she said. "Pride is a very sinful +luxury for people in my position. And I had forgotten all about that +Pandora's box of yours. It is just possible that on the strength of my +_Wheezer_ work I may get a commission from the _Honeysuckle Weekly_. I +believe they pay a slightly better price than the other papers. Let us +have an early lunch, and then I can go the round of the offices. Don't +worry if I am back late. And you can have a good long afternoon at the +postcards." + +Mary had a long afternoon at the postcards indeed, for tea had been a +thing of the past for some time, and as yet Connie had not returned. +Her head was aching now and her hands were stiff with the toil. How +hot and stifling it was, how different to the coolness of the dower +house. And Grace was there by this time, doubtless. + +Mary's day-dreams vanished suddenly at the sound of a cab outside. +Connie stepped out of the cab, followed by a tall, manly figure in a +frock coat. From his quiet air and manner Mary put the stranger down +at once as a doctor. She had little time to speculate as to that, for +she saw to her distress that Connie's hat was off and that her head +was bandaged up with a handkerchief. She staggered as she reached the +pavement, and would have fallen but for the man by her side. Mary flew +to the door with words of quick sympathy on her lips. She could see a +curious tender smile on Connie's lips; her face was red; her eyes were +shining with some great happiness. + +"Not much the matter," she said. "I got jumbled up in the Strand, and +the side-slipping of a motor threw me under a dray. The wheels did not +go over me, and I have not come home to die or anything of that kind. +I got a blow on the head, and I suppose I fainted. When I came to +myself I was in Charing Cross Hospital. Dr. Newcome was very kind to +me, and insisted on seeing me home in a cab. Strange as it may seem, +Dr. Newcome is an old acquaintance of mine, Mary. This is Miss +Dashwood." + +"I am very happy to see you," the doctor said in a pleasant voice. "I +am also glad to say that there is very little the matter with Miss +Colam. I am almost glad of the accident because it has brought Miss +Colam and myself in contact once more. I met her two years ago at +Hastings, when I was getting over a bad illness." + +"Then Dr. Newcome is your doctor, Connie," Mary cried. + +Connie flushed to her eyes. The stranger dropped his _Evening +Standard_ on the table and affected to fold it neatly. + +"I wish I could think so," he said. "We only met for a day. Dreadfully +unconventional, was it not? But I was very lonely at that time and +very ill. My outlook was rather gloomy, too. But I wanted to see Miss +Colam again, and when I got back to London I called at her rooms only +to find her gone. I hope she will believe me when I say that I have +been looking for her ever since." + +"The fortune of war," Connie said with a red face. "Nomads like +ourselves are always changing quarters. And here I am just as poor as +I was that day at Fairlight. I hope you can say more for your +prospects, Dr. Newcome?" + +"I have been very fortunate," Newcome said gravely. "A distant +relative died and left me some money. The money arrived just in time +to enable me to buy an exceedingly good practice. I was calling on a +house surgeon friend of mine at Charing Cross, when Miss Colam came +in. And I do hope she won't change her lodgings again without letting +me know." + +There was no mistaking the significance of the last few words. Clearly +Connie had found the haven of rest for which her tired soul at times +longed for. Mary remembered what she had said as to the man to cling +to for protection in the hour of need, and what a blessed thing the +man's love was for the lonely and depressed. In her mind's eye Mary +could see herself alone in those dingy lodgings, painting her +postcards and waiting for, what? It was, perhaps natural that the +figure of Ralph Darnley should rise before her now. + +"I won't," Connie promised. "You will come and see me again, Dr. +Newcome?" + +Newcome promised eagerly. He would be in town again in a day or two. +Would the girls dine with him, and go to the theatre afterwards? He +had an aunt in London, who he was sure would join the party. He would +ask her to call on Connie. + +"So this is an end of _your_ trouble," Mary laughed, when Newcome had +departed. "It is quite plain to me that you will very soon have the +share of that practice at your disposal, dear. And if the happy +expression of your face means anything, it tells me that you are not +going to refuse the offer." + +Connie hid her blushing face and laughed. She remarked that Dr. +Newcome had left his paper behind him. With some show of interest, she +turned over the paper. Then she stopped, and a little cry broke from +her. + +"Oh, Mary, listen to this!" she exclaimed. "'Mysterious outrage in +Dashwood Park. Only this morning the body of a well dressed man was +found lying in the avenue of Dashwood Park, the residence of Sir +Vincent Dashwood. Robbery appears to have been the motive, for the +pockets of the unfortunate man had been turned out, and his watch and +chain were gone. As the sufferer was in evening dress, and had every +appearance of being a gentleman, inquiries were made, with the result +that the gentleman has been identified as Ralph Darnley. He is at +present lying at the dower house in a precarious condition!'" + +With a broken cry Mary rose to her feet. Her face was white as death +and her hands were convulsively locked together. In a faint voice she +asked for a time table; she wanted to know what time the next train +went. + +"You are going down to Dashwood?" Connie asked. + +"Oh, of course I am," Mary wept. "I could not stay away. I must be +near him so that I may know how he is progressing. I must help to +nurse him back to life again. I owe him everything--my very existence, +my new self, my womanhood that has come as such a precious thing to +me. And to think that once I was fool enough to prefer pride to the +affection of a man like that, who----" + +"Mary, Mary, you love him. You love Ralph Darnley like that!" + +Mary's eyes shone with a strange light. She flung her hands above her +head despairingly. + +"I know it now," she said, "now that it is perhaps too late. Yes, ever +since I first met Ralph I have loved him with my whole heart and +soul." + + + + +CHAPTER LV. +NOT DEAD + + +Mayfield's face was grim and set; there was just a flash of contempt +in his eyes for Speed, who was breathing hard. The dramatic part of +the situation was lost on Mr. George Dashwood, who could think of +nothing else beyond the speculative possibilities that Mayfield had +been holding out to him. + +"You don't seem to be any better," Mayfield said to Speed, "you look +ghastly. Anybody would think that you had been caught in some crime." + +Behind the contemptuous words there was a note of warning to Speed. +Anybody less blind than George Dashwood would have noticed how +agitated he was. Speed caught just a glimpse of his own features in a +quaint old mirror over the fireplace. He could see that he was green +and grey by turns; he started at his own haggard face. Small wonder, +then, that Mayfield had given him a warning. + +"I'm feeling like a corpse," he said. "It's agony for me to sit up any +longer. If you don't mind, I think I'll go to bed." + +"Why not try the fresh air?" Dashwood suggested. "It is a cure +sometimes." + +"Drizzling with rain," Speed replied. "Darnley turned up the collar of +his overcoat as he passed the window. I could see him from behind the +screen. On the whole, I should be far better between the sheets." + +As he spoke Speed shot a questioning glance at Mayfield. The latter +nodded. + +"Perhaps it would be as well," he said; "if you feel as seedy as that. +I must not be long, either, as I have to leave pretty early tomorrow. +I'll just finish my discussion with Mr. Dashwood over a cigar, and +then I'll follow your example. I suppose the butler comes around and +fastens up all the windows?" + +"The rest of the house," Speed explained. "I generally fasten the +windows here myself. I'll leave you to do it tonight, Mayfield. Don't +forget. One never knows what sort of person is hanging about a house +like this." + +Speed crept out of the room and across the hall, on the way to his +room. He was shaking from head to foot still and his legs were hardly +equal to his weight. He lighted a candle with a trembling hand, taking +several matches to do so. Out of the shadow came Slight, who watched +his master with a curious expression. + +"Perhaps you will permit me to do that for you, sir?" he suggested +politely. + +"Go away," Speed cried. "Go to bed. Think that I'm too drunk to light +a candle? Why do you follow me like this? Send my man to me. Gone to +Longtown for the night, has he? Oh, I recollect giving him permission +now." + +Speed staggered up the stairs, and into his own room. Once there, he +opened a cupboard and produced therefrom a bottle of brandy. He poured +out half a tumbler and drank it greedily. He placed his hands over his +eyes as if to hide some horrible vision. He was free now to give way +to his feelings; he was no longer under observation. He would have +given ten years of his life to recall the last half hour. + +He sat there, gazing into space and making no effort to remove his +clothes. An hour passed; then there was a tap on the door. Speed +started violently; he was half afraid that the arm of the law was +groping for him already. His face cleared a little as Mayfield came in +and closed the door very carefully. + +"Well?" the latter said. "Are you getting over it? I'm more than sorry +I started this little business. If Dashwood had had any power of +observation he would have seen that there was something worse than +illness the matter with you tonight." + +"It was awful," Speed groaned, "you would feel just the same if you'd +done it. All the time I was pretending to be ill behind the screen, I +was standing by the open window. I heard Darnley say goodnight to you. +I stood with the loaded stick in my hand. And as he passed by the +window under the veranda I struck him down. . . . He fell stone dead +without a single groan. He lay there absolutely still. And I would +have forfeited all I had to recall those last few moments. If you +could have seen his face----" + +"Oh, never mind that," Mayfield said brutally. "The thing is done and +there is an end of it. And you know perfectly well that you would do +the same thing again tomorrow. So he lies there in the verandah, does +he? What about the stick?" + +"The stick is hidden in the laurel bushes. We can burn that when there +is time." + +"To-night. Our work is not finished. Darnley must not lie there. We +shall have to carry him as far as the drive. It is a bit risky, but +the thing must be done. Everybody has gone to bed now. Dashwood and +old Slight can testify that neither of us have been out of the house +since dinner time, so we are quite safe." + +"Let him lie where he is," Speed whispered, with chattering teeth. +"People will think that he came back for something after we had gone +to bed, and that he had encounter with some prowling burglar. That's +just as good as your plan." + +"No, it isn't," Mayfield said impatiently. "Mine is much more artistic +and reasonable. We have saved our own necks; now we want to put +suspicion upon somebody outside. We've got to carry the body of Ralph +Darnley as far as the avenue; we've got to turn out his pockets as if +he had been robbed. We can bury what he has on him and destroy the +loaded stick at the same time. Everybody has gone to bed. Come along." + +Speed protested and groaned. But it was all the same to Mayfield. He +contemptuously indicated the brandy bottle, and suggested that Speed +should derive a little fleeting courage from it. Another strong dose +and Speed declared himself to be ready. + +They crept down into the hall and from thence into the darkened +dining-room. In the hall Speed hastily snatched a big Inverness cape +from the stand. His intention was obvious. He wanted to throw this +over the body. . . . It lay there quite still under the shelter of the +verandah; outside the rain was gently pattering on the grass. With +half averted head, Speed flung the cloak over the still black form. + +He was heedless of the rain; both were heedless of the rain by this +time. It was not a tiring work, for the night was warm, and Mayfield +had caught a little of Speed's nervous excitement. He did not notice +that it was raining at all. They staggered on for some five hundred +yards along the avenue. Speed declared that he could not go any +farther. + +"This will do," he panted in a hoarse whisper. "Under the oak tree. +It's just the very spot where a man would stop to light a cigar. You +do the rest, Mayfield." + +Mayfield did the rest cautiously enough. It was the dark before dawn; +the birds were not yet awake. A rabbit dashed across the road, and +Speed started. Mayfield was only at work a moment; it seemed like ages +to Speed. They stole quietly back to the house without meeting +anybody; they gained the dining room at length. It was just as they +had left it, nothing to show that anybody had been there. Then they +were back once more in Speed's bedroom. + +"I must have some more brandy," he said. "I believe I could drink the +bottle. You are not looking quite so cool and self-possessed as usual, +Mayfield. Take a drop." + +"I hate the stuff," Mayfield growled. "All the same, I don't mind +confessing that I am just a little bit shaky. I could do it with some +whisky. I suppose I could find a decanter of it on the sideboard?" + +"Always there," Speed explained. "There must have been some rain when +we were out, for my coat is quite damp. So is yours. Better take it +off." + +Mayfield peeled off his dress coat carelessly. He took the candle and +proceeded to make his way down the stairs once more. Surely enough the +big glass bottle of whisky stood on the sideboard. Mayfield helped +himself liberally, and filled up the glass with a spurt of soda from a +syphon. Somebody behind him coughed. + +"It's only me, sir," the thin respectful voice of Slight said. "I've +got a touch of neuralgia, and couldn't sleep, sir. And just now it +seemed to me that I heard somebody about. Got the idea of burglars +into my head, sir." + +"Oh, that's all right," Mayfield said with a suggestion of relief in +his tone. "I couldn't sleep either, so I came down for a drink." + +Slight bowed respectfully. But his old eyes had not overlooked the +fact that little beads of wet glistened on Mayfield's trousers, and +that his dress shoes were spotted with mud. Very silently and +respectfully he crept away up the back stairs, and so to the room of +one of the menservants--a young protégé of his. He was sleeping +soundly enough as Slight laid a hand on his shoulder. He struggled to +a sitting posture. + +"Mr. Slight," he said sleepily. "What is the matter? Is the house on +fire? Why you do look serious! What is the matter?" + +"I don't know," Slight replied. "It may be murder for all I know. And +I thought that I was too clever for those two chaps. Get up and dress +yourself, Walters. As soon as ever it is light we've got something to +do. Don't sit there asking a lot of foolish questions. How did they +manage it when he went so early?" + +Walters stared at the speaker, who pulled up abruptly. + +"I dare say you think I am talking nonsense," he said. "Nothing of the +kind, my lad. Just put your clothes on and come as far as my room. If +anything has happened to that bonny lad of mine, I'll never forgive +myself." + + + + +CHAPTER LVI. +FOUND! + + +The morning was just breaking as Slight and his companion left the +house. By the time that it was possible to see they began their +search. By this time too, Walters had more than an inkling of what was +wrong. They went first in the direction of the dower house and then +back again to the avenue. It was broad daylight now, and the sun was +climbing up over the hills behind the river. Nobody was to be seen +yet, nothing heard but the mad song of the birds welcoming the glory +of the morning. Presently Walters paused and pointed to a black +huddled object under one of the great oaks. + +"What's that?" he whispered with a blanched face. "It looks like a man +sleeping there." + +A cry half of anger, half despair, broke from Slight. He crossed the +drive and fell on his knees by the side of the limp figure. His tears +ran without restraint down the old man's withered face. He was beside +himself with grief. + +"It's Master Ralph," he moaned. "I knew that I should find him like +this. But when he went off so early last night I felt that that +message had done those two ruffians. It made me feel easier in my +mind. If I'd told him of my suspicions he would only have laughed at +me. And to think that I should find him dead like this." + +"Perhaps he isn't dead," Walters suggested in a whisper. + +"Perhaps, not. You are a sensible young chap Walters. He isn't dead, +either. I can feel him breathing. Good job it was a warm night. Good +job, too, he lay under a tree so that the wet couldn't get at him. +There's blood all over the back of his head. A nice murderous crack he +got there. And here am I doddering like a silly old woman, whilst +there is work to be done. Go over to the corner of the wood yonder, +and pull up one of those gorsed hurdles there. Be sharp, boy." + +Walters returned presently, dragging after him a hurdle which was +filled with gorse. And then on this, with their coats and vests under +his head, they laid their unconscious burden. A faint groan broke from +Ralph; he opened his eyes for a moment. + +"It's concussion of the brain, that's what it is," Slight said, with +tears running down his face freely. "I've helped once or twice in the +hunting field before now. Just you get hold of the other end of the +hurdle, and start off on the left foot. We'll get Mr. Ralph as far as +the dower house and send for a doctor." + +It was not far away to the dower house, the inmates of which were +speedily aroused. A little time later and one of the footmen was +riding for a doctor. They made Ralph as comfortable as possible. Lady +Dashwood came into the dining-room presently, where Slight was waiting +to see her. + +"This is a very dreadful business, Slight," she said. "Mr. Ralph was +robbed and half murdered on his way from the Hall, they say. Strange +that you found him." + +"Not so very strange, my lady," Slight replied, "seeing that I +set out early to look for him. I thought last night when your message +came----" + +"What message do you mean? I sent no message to the Hall." + +"Well, that's very strange! Mr. Mayfield is staying at the Hall. He +told Mr. Ralph that you wanted to see him very particularly last +night, and he left early in consequence. Call me an old fool if you +like, my lady, but I had a fancy that those two men meant mischief to +Mr. Ralph. I couldn't sleep for thinking of it. I came downstairs very +early this morning, and I found that Mayfield, not yet undressed, +helping himself to whiskey and soda. And there was mud on his dress +shoes. I couldn't stand it any longer, so I set out at daybreak to +look for I didn't quite know what. And I found Mr. Ralph. How those +fellows managed it, I can't say, but they did manage it. And it is no +fault of theirs that they're not a pair of cold-blooded murderers." + +The doctor came presently. He was upstairs for a long time, but when +he came down again his face was not so grave as might be expected. + +"A bad blow," he explained. "A bad concussion, but no brain injury as +far as I can judge. And the patient is going on as well as I could +expect. Oh, no, he isn't going to die. He has too good a constitution +for that, and he has taken good care of himself. I'll come back in the +course of an hour or so and report again." + +There was nothing for it now but to wait and hope for the best and +keep the patient quiet. Well satisfied with his efforts, Slight +returned to the Hall. When he got back there he found that Mayfield +had already departed. Speed, restless and irritable, and giving the +impression that he had breakfasted on something potent, demanded to +know where Slight had been. Mr. Dashwood had not come down to +breakfast yet. + +"Where have you been gallivanting to?" Speed demanded imperiously. +"I'll put a stop to this. Pack up your traps and go. You'll not serve +me any more." + +"You never spoke a truer word than that," Slight said coolly. "I +sha'n't serve you any more, for the very good reason that you won't be +here to serve. If you raise a hand to me I'll break your head with +this hot water jug, old man as I am. I was out early this morning +looking for a murderer's work, and I found it. It was I who found the +body of Mr. Ralph, and took it to the dower house. And he is not dead; +and what is more to the point he isn't going to die, you cold-blooded +assassin." + +Speed's face turned a ghastly grey. His bluster had left him. + +"I know now how it was done," Slight went on. "I guessed it all as +soon as I heard that Lady Dashwood sent no message as to wanting to +see Mr. Ralph last night. The dodge was to get him to leave the house +and pass along the verandah. You shammed being ill, and pretended that +the light was too strong for you. That enabled you to lie and wait +till Mr. Ralph came along. Then you hit him with a loaded stick, the +one that used to hang in the gun room. James missed that stick just +now and told me so. And there poor Mr. Ralph lay till everybody had +gone to bed. Then you stole out and carried him as far as the big oak +tree, and left him there with his pockets all turned out as if robbery +had been the motive. But one thing gave you away. Mr. Ralph left the +house when it was raining. He walked under the balcony out of the rain +till he was struck down by you, so that he lay sheltered. + +"If he had walked from the house to the oak tree, under which we found +him, his clothes would have been all wet. Whereas they were perfectly +dry. Therefore, his body must have been carried to the old oak after +the murderous assault had been committed. Probably you threw some kind +of wrap over the body in case you met anybody--rabbit poachers or the +like. Oh, you are very clever, sir, but you didn't work your plans +quite so secure as you might. You have so arranged it that you can +call Mr. Dashwood as a witness to prove that you had not been outside +the house after Mr. Ralph left; but there are other things. I came +down early this morning to find Mr. Mayfield here at the whisky and +soda. His dress shoes were covered with mud. I've got those dress +shoes, for I sent Walters home to get them." + +Speed started again. He recollected now that Mayfield had made a fuss +before starting over the loss of his evening slippers. + +"And I've got yours," Slight went on. "I've got proof that you were +both out in the rain last night, after everybody had gone to bed. And +Mr. Ralph isn't dead. And before very long I shall have the pleasure +of giving evidence against you both, and seeing that you don't either +of you do any harm to society for some years to come. And I don't +altogether absolve Mr. Ralph from blame. If he had spoken out in the +first place, all this trouble would have been saved. If he had said +openly, 'I am Sir Ralph Dashwood,' why----" + +"He isn't," Speed said feebly. "I am Sir Vincent----" + +"Vincent fiddlestick," Slight cried shrilly. "Just as if I didn't know +who you were after seeing Sir Ralph for the first time after his +return. I was a blind old fool not to have guessed from the start. I +might have known where you learned all the family secrets. And when +Sir Ralph came home my eyes were opened. He would not let me say +anything, for he had his own reasons for concealing the truth for the +present. But I knew who you were when I spotted who your mother was, +Mr. Vincent Speed." + +The wretched listener made no response. It was hopeless to continue +the fight in the face of such evidence as this. Slight still held the +hot water jug in his hand, ready for anything in the shape of an +assault, but he need not have been alarmed. + +"You are not so clever by half as you think you are," Slight went on. +"You have only been the cat's paw of Mayfield all along. _He_ knew all +about Sir Ralph, though he may not have known my young master's +reasons for concealing his identity. If this murder had been +successful, and you had not been found out, what would have happened? +Mayfield would have had you betrayed and kicked out of the house, and +Mr. Dashwood, as Sir George, would have come into the title and +estates again. And Mayfield would have married Miss Mary. _That_ was +Mayfield's little game as far as I can see it. I may be an old man, +but I'm not quite devoid of wit for all that. And that's why I am no +longer in your service, and so you can make the best of it." + +Slight marched out of the room, feeling that he had vindicated his +position and his manhood. Speed stood there gnawing his nails, sick at +heart, fearsome of every sound. He was a fugitive now, ready to fly, +eager to be away, but with no settled plan of action. His one idea was +to be off to London now and see Mayfield. + + + + +CHAPTER LVII. +A CLEAN BREAST OF IT + + +There were strange rumours in the air; the servants at the Hall were +asking thrilling questions in whispers. Nobody seemed to know anything +but Slight, who kept his counsel. Everything was going to come right +in a day or two; all they had to do was to go about their business +quietly. Late in the afternoon it became known that Sir Vincent had +vanished, and within an hour or two, strange men with an air of +authority were calling at the Hall and asking questions. Mr. Dashwood +had gone over to the dower house to see what was really wrong. He +found Lady Dashwood in the dining-room in deep discussion with the +family solicitor, Mr. Morley. + +"What is all this I hear?" Dashwood asked. "The new head of the family +has vanished, and I'm told that he and Mayfield tried to murder Ralph +Darnley last night. Slight has told me a great deal, but he will not +say anything as to the motive for the extraordinary crime. He says he +prefers to leave me to hear the truth from Lady Dashwood." + +"Or from me," Mr. Morley said grimly. "As I have said all along, you +have been the victim of a most impudent imposter--the son of a woman +called Speed. Lady Dashwood has just been telling me the whole history +of the painful case. I need not go into that at length, Mr. Dashwood, +as it is a confidential matter. She was a sister of the late Mr. Ralph +Dashwood's first wife, which accounts for many things that that +impudent imposter knew. I hear that the police have taken out a +warrant for the arrest of this Speed and his companion in crime, +Horace Mayfield. In any case, they are not likely to trouble us +again." + +George Dashwood responded suitably. He hoped that Mr. Ralph Darnley +was in no danger. At the same time he could not be blind to the fact +that the amazing change in the condition of affairs made a great +difference to his own position. He had suffered the most from the +machinations of the rascal who had so deceived them all. Also, he +could see now that he was free for ever from the persecutions of +Horace Mayfield. He felt quite proud and self-important; his position +took definite shape before him. + +"In that case," he said, "we revert to the old condition of affairs. +As a matter of fact, I have never had any occasion to drop the title +to which----" + +"Pardon me, sir," Morley said drily. "You never had any more right to +it than the wretched criminal who at the present moment is flying +from justice. The young man you know as Ralph Darnley is really Sir +Ralph Dashwood. Lady Dashwood has just given me the most absolute +proofs of his identity. Besides, just before his death, the last Ralph +Dashwood wrote to me and explained everything. It was the new head of +the family who asked me to let Vincent Speed have his lead for a time. +I believe there was some quixotic and sentimental reason to account +for this conduct on Sir Ralph's part. On that head Lady Dashwood can +speak more definitely than I can." + +"When the time comes," Lady Dashwood murmured. "It is exactly as Mr. +Morley says, George. And I am glad to say the doctor reports very +favourably of Ralph this afternoon. If you had ever known my son, +George, you would not have doubted the identity of young Ralph +directly you cast eyes on him. I would rather not tell you as yet the +real reason why he wished to be known as Ralph Darnley." + +George Dashwood was very disappointed. Yet, on the whole, things might +have been worse. He had never disguised from himself that the deposed +impostor was anything but a gentleman. And his position at the Hall +might have been a comfortable one, but it was full of humiliation. +These things Dashwood spoke of as he walked with Morley down the +avenue. + +Meanwhile Lady Dashwood was spending her time between the dining-room +and the bedroom wherein Ralph lay. She was sorry for all the anxiety +and misery on the very day that Grace Cameron had arrived, but she had +found the girl a great comfort to her, she was so quiet and +resourceful, so ready to help. The doctor had called again for the +third time just before dinner, and his report was as favourable as +before. Lady Dashwood and Grace were sitting down to something in the +way of dinner. + +"I have been thinking," Grace said. "Mary ought to know of this." + +Lady Dashwood started and laid down her knife and fork. She had +forgotten all about Mary. + +"She had quite escaped my memory," she confessed. "She will be very +distressed because she rather likes Ralph, and he saved her life on +more than one occasion. But Ralph is masterful and Mary is proud. Of +course, I know what Ralph's feelings are, and I may say that he was +instrumental in getting her out into the world. Oh, my dear, I think +you can guess what the dream of my life is as to those two people." + +Grace smiled with ready sympathy. Her delicate face flushed. + +"It will not be a dream much longer or I am greatly mistaken," she +said. "Mary loves that man. I know by the way she speaks of him. And +Connie Colam has told me. I don't want to be inquisitive, Lady +Dashwood, but I should like to hear the story of that romance. Connie +says that I should hardly know Mary if I had met her on the first day +in London. She was hard and proud and distant, and she deliberately +allowed the ice to grow round her heart; she was eaten up with family +pride. And she learned her lesson in two days. I could see her change, +as a butterfly newly out changes in the sun. I dare say you may call +that a ridiculous simile, but I can't think of a better. And when +Connie spoke to her of love and the advantages of love over everything +else she came to guess. I am sure that Ralph Darnley has told her that +he cares for her." + +"That is so," Lady Dashwood smiled. "He is a very masterful young man, +as I told you before. And I fancy he told Mary that he would win her +in spite of everything. He has taken his own way of doing it, as you +may hear some day. But if all you say is true, I am not going to spoil +Mary's pleasure in the telling of her pretty love story. So you think +that Mary ought to know what has happened? You think that if we send +her a telegram she will come down here at once?" + +"I am certain of it," Grace cried. "She will be displeased with us +that we had forgotten. It is all going to come right, Lady Dashwood. +Your dream is coming true, and Mary will be a happy girl yet." + +Lady Dashwood smiled as she reached for the telegram forms. She +wondered if it would be possible for Mary to reach the dower house +that night. Presently a cab crept along the drive; no doubt it was the +doctor coming to call once more. Then Grace gave a cry of pleasure as +the cab door opened and a slender figure in black jumped out. + +"She is here, Lady Dashwood," the girl exclaimed. "Mary! She must +have heard. These things find their way into London evening papers +directly." + +The door of the dining-room opened and Mary came in. She was pale and +agitated; she had her hand to her heart. It was some time before she +could speak. She glanced from one to the other, as if not daring to +ask what was trembling on the tip of her tongue. Her eyes filled with +relief as she noted the welcome on the faces of the others. + +"He is better?" she gasped. "He is not dead. I--I was afraid to ask. +Oh, if you only knew the gnawing agony of the last hour! I saw it in +one of the evening papers. I flew down here as soon as possible. And +how is he--how is Ralph?" + +Deeply touched as she was, Lady Dashwood smiled. She was glad to hear +Ralph's name come so naturally off Mary's tongue. It showed that she +thought of him by his Christian name. + +"He is much better," she said. "The doctor gives a very good report. +And he is not in the least likely to die this time." + +"You might have let me know," Mary said reproachfully. "It would have +saved a deal of anxiety. And I am quite sure that in his heart you +know that----" + +"You loved the man who is lying upstairs," Grace said gently. + +Mary's pale face flushed; a yearning look came into her eyes. + +"You have finished the confession for me," she cried. "I did not know, +I could not guess till I saw that dreadful paper. And then it came to +me that a great blank would come into my life if Ralph died. He said +that I should learn my lesson, and I have done so. It has not taken me +long to learn the difference between the false and the true, and that +love is everything, and money and position are nothing by the side of +it. And then as if some veil had been lifted from my eyes, I saw that +I had cared for Ralph all the time. He told me once that I should come +to him on my knees and ask forgiveness. I am ready to do it now." + +The girl's voice rose loud and clear; she looked very sweet and +womanly in her self-abnegation. She felt all the better for her +confession, as if a weight had been lifted from her soul. Lady +Dashwood would have said nothing in reply, but the door opened at the +same moment and the nurse came in. + +"Mr. Darnley is conscious, my lady," she said. "He asked for you. It +will do no harm if you see him for one moment. He seems troubled to +think that he is in your room----" + +Mary darted for the door. Before anybody could interfere she was +half-way up the stairs. In the darkened room Ralph lay; he could catch +the rustle of a dress; he noted the faint fragrance of a woman's hair. +Then Mary was kneeling by the bedside, her cool, wet face pressed to +Ralph's hot flushed one. + +"I have come to you," she said. "My darling, I have come to you. My +lesson has been learned. My eyes have been opened. And I love you, +Ralph. I have come to tell you, and make my confession. On my knees, +dear, on my knees, dear heart, as you prophesied, I make it!" + + + + +CHAPTER LVIII. +"THE KING IS DEAD.----" + + +Mr. George Dashwood was of opinion that things at the Hall were not as +they used to be in the old days. In the first place he had been +compelled to walk up from the station after ordering a trap to meet +him on his return from Longtown, and now he could see no sign of +dinner. He had come downstairs in a temper, and had looked into the +dining-room as he passed. + +It was eight o'clock to the moment; there was no sign of dinner. The +banks of ferns and the great silver bowls of roses were there, but +nothing else. Dashwood forgot for the moment that he was no longer +master of the house, and rang the bell. Slight came in presently. He +was still wearing his morning coat. + +"What is the meaning of this?" Dashwood demanded. "I ordered a trap to +meet me at the station and no trap appears. Then I came back here to +dinner, of which I see no sign. Have the servants left the house in a +body?" + +"No, sir," Slight replied. "We have had a trying day. In the first +place the police----" + +"Oh, the police, have they been here? Is there any clue to the +mysterious attack upon Mr.--er, Ralph Darnley? I had to go into +Longtown today; I did not expect to get back here till late. If your +master has suddenly been called to town----" + +"He has vanished, sir," Slight said, "you may not be so very much +surprised to hear that he was at the bottom of the attack on Mr. +Ralph--leastways I'll speak of him as Mr. Ralph for the present. In a +manner of speaking, it was I who found the whole thing out. Perhaps it +was foolish of me to do so, but I couldn't help letting that rascal +know all about it. He went off in a great hurry this morning, and +I for one shall be very much surprised if we ever see him again. +In a manner of speaking, we are like a lot of servants in bear +cages--nobody to look after us or give any orders. Me and the +housekeeper are doing what we can, sir, in the hopes that Lady +Dashwood will come over tomorrow and take charge. And that's why your +dinner is forgotten." + +"We will let it pass," Dashwood said with great magnanimity. "In the +present extraordinary circumstances, I suppose that I cannot complain. +If you could get me some cold chicken and salad, Slight, I dare say I +could manage. And perhaps you will be so good as to wait on me +yourself, seeing that you are so far in the confidences of the family. +And perhaps you will give me an idea of what has happened." + +The salad and chicken were served presently, and the meal together +with the champagne, went far to salve Dashwood's wounded dignity. A +cigarette completed the process. + +"Now tell me everything," he said. "Mind you, you must be wrong as to +our late host having anything to do with the outrage on Ralph +Darnley." + +"Begging your pardon, sir," Slight replied. "Why, the thing was as +good as admitted. To call him by his proper name, Vincent Speed saw +that the game was up. Mind you, servants hear a great deal more than +their employers give them credit for, and I know that in some way +Speed was under the thumb of that scoundrel Mayfield. How you could +ever have tolerated him in the house, beats me, sir." + +"_I_ was also under the thumb of Mayfield," Dashwood murmured. "He was +the sort of man who always got his own way, and he was not in the +least scrupulous as to his methods. Possibly he knew who Speed really +was." + +"That's it, sir," Slight said eagerly. "He was after money. Well, +Speed found out that Mr. Ralph was the real heir, and that his time +here was limited. I dare say Speed got that information from his +mother. I suppose it never occurred to the fool that both Lady +Dashwood and myself knew who Mr. Ralph was." + +"How did you know?" Dashwood asked. "I'm sure I didn't." + +"Because you never met Mr. Ralph's father, sir. The likeness is a +speaking one. The very first day that Mr. Ralph arrived here, I knew +that you had no right to be in this house at all, sir. The same when +Speed came along--though I'm bound to admit that he took me in at +first." + +"But the whole thing is inexplicable," Dashwood said irritably. "Why +this masquerade? Why was Speed permitted to oust me at all? And why +did I remain here?" + +Slight had his opinion, but it was not his plan to utter this. He +shook his head with an air of wisdom. Perhaps Miss Mary could explain +that part. At any rate, if she could not do so, Lady Dashwood could +solve the problem. + +"Well, it really doesn't matter," Dashwood exclaimed. "Get on with +your story. What had Speed to do with the disgraceful attack on Ralph +Darnley?" + +"He struck the blow, sir," Slight proceeded. "The murderous plot was +arranged between Speed and Mayfield. It was necessary to get Mr. Ralph +out of the way, and they determined to do it. For that purpose Mr. +Ralph was invited to dine at the Hall. The game was to get him out of +the way in such a manner as would not throw the slightest suspicion on +those ruffians. They picked out you, sir, to be their witness as to +the fact." + +"But they were not out of the house," Dashwood protested. "Neither of +them left the dining-room till bedtime, and we all went to bed +together. And Speed had such a dreadful bilious attack that he was +good for nothing. I have no reason to love either of those fellows, +but I should be compelled to exonerate them." + +"It _was_ clever," Slight admitted. "At the same time, it was Speed +who did it. He sat behind the screen over yonder, sir, but the window +leading to the balcony was open. Perhaps you will call to mind how +Mayfield left the table to fetch his cigar case. Then he came back +with a message to the effect that Lady Dashwood wanted to see Mr. +Ralph on his way home. I have had it from her Ladyship's lips that she +sent no message of the kind. Still, the supposed message had the +desired effect for it took Mr. Ralph past the balcony; Speed had only +to pop out and knock him on the head, which he did. All the time you +thought that he was simply sitting in the armchair behind the screen." + +"Incredible, but possible," Dashwood murmured. "Go on, Slight." + +"Well, sir, I was frightened. I felt that there was something dark +going on, and I didn't go to bed. I came downstairs and found Mayfield +drinking whisky and soda not long before daylight. And his dress +slippers were all over dirt. I got hold of Speed's pumps, too, and +they were as bad. That told me a story. I made Walters get up, and +together we began a search. At the foot of one of the oak trees in the +park we found Mr. Ralph. Though it had been raining at the time he +left here, his clothes were quite dry, though we found him nearly half +a mile from the house. Then I knew quite well that the body had been +carried there. The pockets being turned out was only to make it look +like robbery. And I taxed Speed with it. I gave him chapter and verse +for everything, and he's gone. And, what's more, I know what his game +is. I got that from the telegrams he sent and the timetable he left +about. He's gone to Weymouth on his way to Jersey. When he reaches +Weymouth, he'll charter a fishing boat to take him as far as Jersey. +It's no great distance, and for a little time he will be safe there. +From Jersey he can easily get across to Granville by a sailing boat." + +The more Dashwood thought this over the more was he disposed to +agree with the old servant. It was good, at any rate, to know that +he was no longer likely to suffer at the hands of Mayfield, for +that rascal would have to fly also. No doubt Speed had given his +fellow-conspirator a hint of what had happened, and that by this time +he, too, was on his way to some place of safety. With these thoughts +uppermost in his mind, Dashwood walked across the park in the +direction of the dower house. + +It was not yet dark, and Lady Dashwood was walking in the garden. +There was a look of peace and happiness on her face that Dashwood had +never seen there before. It was, at any rate, a good omen as to the +progress of the patient. + +"I have been having a long talk with Slight," Dashwood explained. "He +has been giving me some astounding information. I have been in +Longtown all day, and when I came back Speed had vanished. And Slight +had afforded very cogent reasons for his disappearance. Only I am +utterly in the dark as to why Ralph Darnley has behaved in this way. +Slight suggests that you know." + +"I do," Lady Dashwood smiled. "It is a very pretty story, and I think +that even you will be touched when it comes to be told. In the +meantime, there is one thing that I will ask you to do--please say +nothing to Mary as to who Ralph really is till you have permission." + +"I can promise that all the more readily because I am not likely to +see Mary," Dashwood said in a grieved tone. "The child has behaved +very badly to me; she seems to forget that I am her father. So long as +she remains in London----" + +"She is not in London, George. She has come back, and so far as I can +judge, is not in the least likely to return to London again. Directly +she heard of Ralph's accident, she came here at once to nurse him. Do +not forget that she owes her life to Ralph. And do not forget that he +loves the very ground she walks on. If my memory serves me correctly, +he told you as much when you were doing your best to sell your child +to that scoundrel Mayfield. If you refrain from interfering, that +romance will end happily." + +"By Jove, you don't mean it?" Dashwood cried. Visions of himself, +comfortably housed and fed at Dashwood, rose before his eyes. It was +not quite like being the master of the house, but it was the next best +thing. "What a fortunate circumstance! Really, my dear lady, I appear +to be luckier than I deserve." + + + + +CHAPTER LIX. +"LONG LIVE THE KING!" + + +On the whole it was a most marvellous recovery. The nurse had been a +little severe on Mary; she had had no business to fly to the bedroom +of the patient in that way. But Ralph was most emphatically of the +opinion that Mary's action had hastened his convalescence. At the end +of the week he was in the drawing-room with the windows open, so that +he could catch the sweet fragrance of the summer air, and the doctor +was jokingly congratulating him on the thickness of his skull. The +London police had been very busy during the past week, but as yet no +success had rewarded their efforts. Ralph had said nothing; it was +deemed far wiser not to allude to the attack at present, and old +Slight had remained silent in the presence of the detectives. Their +superior air irritated him and, therefore, he kept his knowledge to +himself. + +As to the rest, George Dashwood was in Paris. He had been sent there +on an errand by Lady Dashwood, who wanted him out of the way. The +chatelaine of the dower house was afraid lest George Dashwood should +speak out and spoil everything. And Mary had more or less made her +peace with her father, who had forgiven her. + +"I've no doubt you thought that you were acting for the best," he +said. "You are not quite old enough fully to appreciate what is due to +the family pride. Still, as nobody knows that you have so far +forgotten yourself as to try to earn your own living, it does not much +matter. I suppose you have done nothing to be ashamed of." + +Mary replied with becoming meekness that she hoped so. Only a little +time before she would have flung back the suggestion with passionate +scorn. But lately she had become more cheerful and gayer in her +disposition. Still, the situation was not without its humorous side. +It was not for Mary to point out to her father what a humiliating +position he had occupied when he had accepted the impostor's offer of +a home at the Hall. But as yet Mary knew nothing of the impostor's +downfall, or the real story of the outrage on Ralph. All that was to +come. So George Dashwood departed on his errand to Paris, and the +mistress of the dower house breathed more freely. + +The nurse had gone now; her services were no longer required. And +tomorrow the doctor had told Ralph that he could walk across the park +if he liked. The next day was a wet one, however, so there was no +opportunity. The third day broke gloriously fine, and Ralph came down +to breakfast, a little pale and shaky, but almost himself again. Lady +Dashwood was reading the paper with a grave face. It was not until the +meal was over that she drew Ralph aside. + +"I am going to speak freely to you," she said. "It is a strange thing +that you have never asked if we had found anything out about your +accident." + +"I was waiting for you to speak," Ralph said. "As for myself, I +remember nothing. The night I was dining at the Hall, Mayfield gave me +a cigar. Almost as soon as I reached the open air, I became so drowsy +that I could have fallen down and gone to sleep. A sudden pain darted +through my head, and I recollected no more till I came to myself here, +and found that Mary was on her knees by the side of my bed. Did I +dream that, or did Mary come then and say that she loved me? It was +only for a few minutes that I was conscious." + +"I have no doubt that _that_ was real enough," Lady Dashwood smiled +tenderly. "Mary did rush up to your room, and a fine scolding she got +from the nurse for it. But you can settle all that with our dear girl +later. Let us get one thing over at a time. You have not the slightest +idea who made that attack on you?" + +Ralph confessed that such was the case, and Lady Dashwood proceeded to +enlighten him. She told Ralph everything that she had gleaned for +herself, and that Slight had acquainted her with. Ralph's face was +very grave and stern as he listened to the story. + +"A very pretty plot," he said. "I can see it all quite clearly now. It +was invented by Mayfield. It never occurred to me till now that +Mayfield guessed who I was. You see he had seen my father. Very lately +Mayfield had been in dire need of money. _I_ had seen to that. He +could guess why I stood aside and let it appear as if Speed was the +heir of the property; he could see that I did this to save Mary, +knowing that I could stop it later and claim my own. But this gave +Mayfield a chance to blackmail Speed whilst he had a grip on the +family exchequer. After that was done, Speed could go hang, as far as +Mayfield was concerned. The whole thing was spoiled by my chance +meeting with Speed in his mother's house. She could tell him who I +really was. Hence the plot that nearly killed me. Perhaps I have been +a little bit too clever. If ever I come across my friend Vincent Speed +again----" + +"You will never do that," Lady Dashwood said. "The man is dead. He +perished in yesterday's storm, crossing from Jersey to Granville in a +rickety boat. There is a paragraph here in the papers. The man seems +to have assumed his own name again, for his linen was marked Vincent +Speed. And old Slight told me that he meant to escape in that way. On +the whole, my dear Ralph, it will be just as well to save scandal as +much as possible. Of course, the neighbours will naturally want to +know a great deal, but we need not talk too much." + +"I quite agree with that, though I fancy that the family pride will +get short shrift from me," Ralph laughed. "You had better put it down +to the fact that I had a democratic mother. But have you heard +anything of Mayfield?" + +"He has gone, Ralph, nobody knows where. There was a good deal about +him in yesterday's papers--the disappearance of a City man, and +strange stories of his swindled clients. I understand that a warrant +on some charge or another has been obtained for his arrest. But he +will never be found, Ralph; he is too cunning for that. On the whole, +it will be better for you to tell the simple truth, that you had not +the slightest idea who caused your accident." + +"Well, as a matter of fact, I haven't," Ralph said. "But, of course, +Mary must know all these things. I can only rejoice in the misfortune +that has brought us together, and opened her eyes to the truth that +love is best of all things. I suppose she has no idea----" + +"None whatever," Lady Dashwood said eagerly. "Slight will say nothing, +and George Dashwood has been got out of the way on purpose. But is it +not time, my dear boy, that Mary should be told the whole story? You +need not fear any longer that her heart is given to Ralph Darnley, and +that Sir Ralph Dashwood is quite a secondary consideration." + +Ralph laughed with a tender inflection in his voice. + +"I was going to do it after lunch," he said. "And positively I feel +quite nervous about it. You are very anxious to see us married, +grandmother?" + +"It will be the crowning happiness of a miserable life," Lady Dashwood +said. "I have already told you the story of my past, of the sin that +cost one life and wrecked the happiness of two others. For that sin I +have fully atoned; I fancy that my punishment is ended, and that is +the one thing that you are never to tell our dear Mary." + +Ralph promised solemnly. After a pause Lady Dashwood proceeded: + +"Now you know everything," she said. "I want to see my boy soon back +in his proper place; I want to see the best ruler that Dashwood ever +had. We have been too proud and cold in the past, and have thought +more of our dignity than of the comfort and happiness of those +dependent upon us. But I see that that is not going to be your way, +and I rejoice in the knowledge. And in future I know that it is not +going to be Mary's way, either. And if the evening of my life is +going to be finished in the sunshine, I shall not regret the past. All +I want to do now is to see a child of yours and Mary's on my lap, and +. . . that's all, Ralph." + +Ralph rose and kissed the speaker tenderly. He quite understood her +feelings. + +"God grant that it may be as you say," he murmured. "But I feel so +anxious. And till now I have been quite strong in the knowledge that I +should win Mary in the long run. She could never have married +Mayfield; I had only to declare myself, and that was finished. But I +saw the way to open the eyes of my dear one, and I did it. Still, I +wish it was all over, the confession made, and my forgiveness freely +offered. By tea time I shall know." + +It was a quiet but very happy little party that gathered presently at +the luncheon table. Mary was soft and subdued; she had not forgotten +the night of her return, and the way in which she had knelt by Ralph's +bedside, and told him of her love. From that day the subject had not +been alluded to between them, for Mary had rather avoided Ralph save +in the presence of others. But when she met his glance from time to +time, she knew that all was well, and that the sacrifice she had made +was the crowning blessing of her life. + +"How sweet those roses are!" she said, as she plunged her heated face +into a bowl of blossoms. "I used to smell those roses all the time I +was in London. Really, I pretended to be very independent and all that +kind of thing, but I'm afraid I should never have been able to stand +the life. I should have run down here, and pretended that I was not +well enough to return." + +"Not you," Grace laughed. "Now, with me the case is different. It is +essential to good art that we should have congenial surroundings. Do +you know that I have done three solid hours' work today without +feeling the least fatigue! If I had attempted such a thing in London, +I should have been knocked up for a week." + +"A few days have worked wonders in you," Ralph said. "In honour of the +occasion, we will go and have tea at the Hall. Mary and myself will go +and make all the arrangements, and you can follow with Lady Dashwood. +What do you say, Mary?" + +"We are trespassers," the girl said, with a laugh and a blush. "Still, +the owner is away, and I am quite sure that Slight will give us a +warm welcome." + + +[Illustration: "He had Mary's hand in his." (_Page 397_)] + + + + +CHAPTER LX. +OPEN CONFESSION + + +They had been very quiet for a long time as they sat in the rose +garden looking over the park. They could see the dappled deer under +the great oaks; the shadow of the fine old house lay behind. There was +something very soothing and peaceful about the picture. It was Ralph +who spoke presently; he had Mary's hand in his, and she did not draw +it away. + +"It is a pity to lose this," he said, "to know that it has gone for +ever. Mary, you were better and braver far than you knew, when you +turned your back on Dashwood Hall." + +"Was I?" Mary asked absently. "It will always be a sadness and a +sorrow to me, more from the knowledge of what I might have some day +made the place than anything else. But I need not dwell on that. I +have my living to get now." + +"And I suppose I have mine," Ralph said. "Mary, you know what is on +the tip of my tongue. Could you share that lot with me? But I know +that you would; I know what your feelings are. You told me the night +you came back here; you said that my prophecy had come true; that you +had returned to ask my pardon on your knees. Do you regret that?" + +"No," Mary said resolutely. "I do not regret it for a moment. Because +it was true then, and it is truer now. It was Connie who taught me +that lesson, I think. She pointed out to me what a good thing a man's +love was. And when I thought that I had lost you, why, then I knew +what my mind was. If I am worth the taking, Ralph----" + +"My darling, you were always worth the taking," Ralph cried. "Even in +the days of your pride I had dreams of the sweet Mary that would like +you to love her, and behold, here she is! And you are prepared to +share the lot of a poor man without even a pedigree?" + +Mary swayed towards her lover, and he caught her in his eager arms. +The next minute her face was hidden on his breast, happy tears rolling +down her cheeks. + +"Don't," she whispered. "Oh, please don't remind me of that, Ralph. +From the bottom of my heart I love you; I must have loved you from the +very first. What does it matter what you are, so long as you are what +you are--a good man, with a kind heart for a foolish girl like me? I +am prepared to share your lot, and go where you like, Ralph; anywhere +you choose to take me. We shall be very poor, I suppose, but that does +not matter. I am glad, _glad_ that the day came when I had to leave +the Hall." + +"And if you never return you will not regret it, Mary?" + +"No, Ralph, not with you by my side. And as to poverty, why, it could +not be worse than what I have gone through lately. We shall be very +poor, Ralph." + +"Not so very poor," Ralph smiled. There was nobody near to see them, +so the girl's head rested happily on Ralph's shoulder, his arm round +her waist. "Dearest, I have a confession to make to you. We are not +poor at all." + +"But I thought that you had lost everything, Ralph. That Mr. Mayfield +had your money. But don't let us talk about him. It makes me hot and +cold all over. To think that at one time there was more than a +possibility that I should----" + +"No, there was never the slightest possibility," said Ralph. "I have +had all the cards in the game from the very first. Mary, I am going to +tell you a little story; it is the history of a man who passed most of +his early life in America, where he did not see many people. He was +quite a well-born man, but his father had quarrelled with his +relatives, and so he had not all the advantages which were due to his +station. But he was well brought up, and prided himself that he had a +high sense of honour. + +"Well, in time, he came to Europe, and then he met the one woman that +he needed. She was very lovely, very proud, and very distant. But that +young man could see what lay under her pride, and he determined to win +her for his wife. She liked him, but she refused him. And for two +years he did not meet her again. Then he came to England, and accident +brought those two together again. In the meantime, the girl's father +had come into possession of the family estates, and the girl was more +proud and distant than ever. And still that young man was not +dismayed. + +"And now comes the strange part of my story. The young man, whose +father had died in the meantime, had come here to claim a title and a +property. He had not known anything of this till his father died, but +he came, and his grandmother recognized him at once. But that very +same property and title had passed to the girl's father. Now, the +young man might have told the girl this, and doubtless she would have +married him. But he was a romantic young man, and desired to be +married for his own sake. Then another claimant to the property turned +up, and the young man pretended to back this impostor's claim. He did +this, so that the girl should go out in the world, as he felt that she +would, and get her own living. And his estimate of the girl was +correct, for she did so." + +"Go on," Mary whispered. "You can't tell how interested I am." + +"Well, it was even as the young man had expected. The +carefully-planned plot succeeded beyond the most sanguine +expectations. The girl went out into the world, and almost at once her +better nature began to prevail. She saw the world through other eyes; +she learned what a wonderful and complex thing humanity is. And when +that young man saw the girl again he was astonished and delighted. He +did not regret his plot in the least. He knew now that here was the +real girl that he loved, deprived of her pride and hauteur, +palpitating with love and tender sympathy. . . . In your case would +you have forgiven that man, Mary?" + +"Oh, yes, yes," Mary cried. "Oh, I can read between the lines of your +parable. I am the girl and you are the man who has brought me to my +senses. Ralph, it sounds like a fairy story. And so you took this +means of opening my eyes, and showing me how small and narrow my world +was. Forgive you? Could you ever forgive me? And to think that you are +the son of Ralph Dashwood come back after all these years. And to +think that Lady Dashwood should know and not tell me. Marvellous!" + +"I bound her to secrecy," Ralph explained. "And, really, things fell +out wonderfully for me. There was the incident of the fire and that +matchbox, for instance; the incident that forced the impostor Speed to +declare himself. For, of course, you have guessed who the man who +called himself Sir Vincent Dashwood really was. I suppose we shall +never hear who it was who tried to set the Hall on fire." + +Mary laughed happily through her tears. + +"And you never found that out?" she said. "Why, I knew at once. And I +was horribly afraid lest the person should be found out and severely +punished. Do you recollect the night that those men took possession of +the Hall, the night when you tried to save me from Mayfield? Old +Patience was there. It was one of her lucid nights when she possessed +her full intelligence. And she kept on crying for somebody to smoke +the rats out, for somebody who had courage to put the match to the +faggot. I found her quite late, and took her to sleep for the night in +my dressing-room. And when you came to save me, Patience had vanished. +I never had the slightest doubt who set the Hall on fire, and I hope +that you will not mention this to anybody, Ralph. Patience has quite +forgotten it. I alluded to the subject only yesterday, and she +expressed her indignation." + +"Well, that is the last of the mysteries cleared," Ralph said. "I +suppose the poor creature found that matchbox somewhere. The next +thing is to proclaim myself, and then, Mary, you can come back to the +Hall as mistress again." + +"What happiness!" Mary whispered. "But a different kind of happiness +to the old. I shall hope a little later to see the old Hall a +different place to what it has ever been before. I should like to +build a charming house close by for the benefit of girls like my +friends Connie and Grace. I owe them more than I can ever repay; +indeed, I owe humanity in general a deep debt of gratitude. You will +let me have my own way over this, Ralph, for I have set my heart on +it." + +"It shall be as you say, darling," Ralph whispered, as he kissed the +red lips tenderly. "For the honour of the house, for now and +evermore." + + + + +THE END. + + + + + + + + +End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of The Nether Millstone, by Fred M. White + +*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 57312 *** |