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This text has been proofread but is not guaranteed to be free from errors. Corrections to the original text have been left in place.
Title: The Adventures of a Lady Pearl-Broker, an electronic edition
Author: Heron-Maxwell, Beatrice, d. 1927
Publisher: The New Century Press, Limited
Place published: London
Date: 1899
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THE ADVENTURES OF A LADY
      PEARL-BROKERPRINTED ATBRIGHTS, LIMITED,BOURNEMOUTH AND
      LONDON.A picture of a woman, entitled "The Lady
	Pearl-Broker"THE ADVENTURESOF ALADY
      PEARL-BROKERBY BEATRICE
      HERON-MAXWELLLONDONTHE NEW CENTURY PRESS, LIMITED434, STRAND, W.C1899THE
    ADVENTURESOF ALADY PEARL-BROKERCHAPTER I."WHAT I want is this," said Mr. Leighton, the prince of pearl
merchants, throwing himself back in his chair, and looking severely at
me over the top of his glasses:"I want a lady, a young lady, who is good-looking, smart, and free
of encumbrances, who has a nice manner, and a sweet voice, is
accustomed to society and yet knows how to hold her own, and who,
besides all these, has plenty of pluck."I meditated for a moment."I have no encumbrances, Mr. Leighton," I said. "I am a widow, as
you know, and have few relations, and I am quite sure that I have any
amount of courage--but as to the rest of the qualities you are in
search of, I--""The rest are all right," he interrupted. "I don't require you to
tell me that, Mrs. Delamere; I can see it for myself. But"--he leant
toward me and tapped my chair with his glasses--"I think it only right
to tell you that there is a good deal of risk, which I share with you,
and a chance of danger which you must venture by yourself. Are you
prepared to do it?"I reflected again."The risk would be both yours and mine?" I questioned. "In what
way?""In the way of monetary loss," he answered; "it would be possible
for you to lose more than you could ever repay, and I should have to
bear the brunt of it, because it would be my property. You couldn't
guarantee it, and all I can do is to be assured--as I am--of your
trustworthiness. The risk remains.""And the danger," I concluded, "is entirely mine. Very well,
Mr. Leighton, I consent.""Not so fast," he said; "you must wait till you know what it is. In
the first place you would get, as I have already told you, a good
income from it, partly in salary, partly in commission, and the work
would not be arduous. It would mean two or three hours a day three or
four times a week; sometimes less, sometimes more. It would entail
your living in town, in a house or rooms of your own, and keeping your
own carriage. Now for the work itself. Have you heard of lady
pearl-brokers?"I replied that I had not."Well," he said, "it has been tried in Paris, and with great
success. There is a certain number of ladies of good position who
undertake to be mediums between pearl merchants and their clients. I
do not mean to say that you have to solicit orders from your personal
friends--not at all. You may occasionally treat with private people,
who wish to lay out a large sum in gems; but, as a rule, your
business would
be with the heads of large jewellers firms, and as they are generally
of the upper class, it is easier to approach them if you can do so on
equal terms. The qualifications I have mentioned are all desirable in
order to facilitate good business. And in addition, we find that
ladies have an instinct for appraising the value of jewels. We in the
trade of course learn how to distinguish between good and bad, but
ladies seem to become experts without any training at all. They can
almost detect a flaw with their eyes shut. But the risk is that you
would have to carry about with you sometimes fifteen or twenty
thousand pounds' worth of jewels."He looked to see if I showed any sign of alarm, but I was gazing at
him quite quietly, and he went on:"Your only plan is to observe absolute secrecy as to your
occupation; to choose your servants and house carefully; to drive in
your own carriage with a coachman you can depend on, and, under all
circumstances, to keep your head.""And the jewels," I added. "I am ready to
begin work as soon as you like, Mr. Leighton. I can arrange about my
carriage in a day or two; and with regard to a house, I should greatly
prefer, in any case at first, to stay on at the Howarth Hotel, where I
am at present. I have been going in a little for journalism, as you
know. I shall give out that I have some literary employment which
necessitates my staying in town. I am really safer in many ways at an
hotel, especially as I shall always carry the pearls about with me, in
a safe place which I shall contrive in my dress. Let me try it at all
events.""Very well," he said; "I will let you manage things in your own
way. Only remember that you must always be looking out for an
attack. If it once gets known--and London thieves learn these things
in the most marvellous way--that a woman is in possession of jewellery
to any extent, she is marked at once, and sooner or later they have a
try for it.""It is worth some risk to have an assured income," I said,
smiling. "Money is so easy to lose, Mr. Leighton; so hard to gain. And poor widows
are looked upon in society so often as adventuresses. People seem to
think it a disgrace that one's husband should not leave one enough to
live on. Well! I will return in a week from to-day, and ask for
instructions. and my first instalment of jewels.""Think it well over," said Mr. Leighton, as, he shook hands; "put
yourself in a pearl-broker's place--imagine yourself carrying about a
small fortune with you, and think how you would act in the event of
anything untoward happening to you."I thought it a very good plan, and decided to adopt his suggestion,
although I knew that nothing would now deter me from undertaking the
work. As he showed me into the square courtyard that led to his
office, I involuntarily glanced round in all directions to see if
there were any suspicious-looking person about, or if my presence
there were attracting any notice. The buildings all round the court
looked mostly like counting-houses, or wholesale warehouses. There was
very little sign of life; a clerk diligently adding up ledgers behind a
very dingy window, two or three boys dodging each other round the
posts that stood at intervals across the entrance to the square; a
flower-woman, with a dilapidated basket, sitting in the gutter trying
to rock an unruly baby to sleep. I went slowly down the steps.Supposing that I was holding the jewels in my muff, instead of the
very meagre purse it contained, would it be safe to cross the court
and make my way to the thoroughfare beyond?Quite safe, I decided mentally; and as I did so I glanced up at the
house opposite. High up on the fifth story was an open window, and
hanging out of it a little way, as though held there, was an
Oriental-looking curtain.Some movement in the curtain attracted my eye, and I looked still
more closely. Half hidden by its folds, which he was clutching with
one hand so as to shield him from observation, was a man with a
strange, wild face, and matted black hair. He had a dark skin, and a
Hindoo cast of feature, and he might have been anything from a fakir to a cloth
merchant. I had seen such faces amongst the native workers, or the
jugglers, at exhibitions; it was a familiar type; yet something in his
fixed regard vaguely troubled me. We looked steadfastly at one another
for a moment, then he dropped the curtain so that it concealed him. I
walked away down the court with the absolute certainty in my mind
that, as soon as my back was turned, he peeped out again after me.I resolutely put him out of my thoughts; it would not do, I told
myself, to be nervous because people looked at me, when I was soon
going to undertake so great a responsibility. I must learn to be
equable, and while noticing everything, not to give undue weight to
trifles.I took a cab and drove back to the Howarth Hotel, where, as I had
often stayed from time to time before I was a widow and afterwards, I
felt quite at home.For the next few days I occupied myself entirely in preparations
for my new undertaking, keeping always in my mind the thought of
possible danger. But my nerves remained quite steady, and by the end
of the week I was more determined than ever to go through it, and to
make it a success. I had bought a neat little brougham, and a charming
horse, and arranged to keep them in a private stable which was to let
close by; and I had found a coachman who seemed the one of all others
to be desired. Steady, sober, unmarried, with the very highest
references, and carrying such a good character written across his
honest face, I felt I was absolutely safe in his hands. He was to live
over the stable, and intended, as he put it, to keep himself to
himself; and I was very glad to hear it.I had contrived secret pockets in various unexpected places in my
dress, those I was especially pleased with being some small oblong
ones in the lower part of my sleeves, on the inner side of the wrists
under the cuffs. It would be impossible for me to lose anything out of
them, and quite impossible for anyone to cut out the pockets while I
had my senses
about me. With regard to keeping the jewels at night, I bought a small
safe, but, for fear of attracting attention, I did not have it
fastened to the wall of my room or leave it out en evidence; instead, I placed it inside my trunk, which
served as a settee in a corner of my bedroom, and was always covered
with a rug; and screwed it right through the bottom of my trunk to the
floor.Then I enclosed the key in a brooch, the back of which opened with
a secret spring. The receptacle had been originally intended for a
portrait or a lock of hair, and the spring was concealed under one of
the letters of my name, "Mollie," written in small brilliants across
the front of the brooch. I had been in the habit of wearing it every
day, and there would be nothing unusual therefore in my doing so. It
fastened with a safety pin, and a small chain attached to it went
round my neck.It was a proud though an anxious moment for me when, at the end of
my next interview with Mr. Leighton, I emerged from the office with pearls to the
value of £11,000 concealed about me.There were amongst them some specially fine ones, which he had
first suggested should wait until I had had a little practice in my
profession, but at my earnest entreaty he yielded them to me at
last. I have always hated having things made easy for me--there is
then no satisfaction in accomplishing them.I glanced up at the window where I had seen my Oriental friend; it
was closed, and there was no sign of anyone within.But as I passed through the posts at the end of the court, a
curious figure, half English and half Eastern-looking, turned out of
the street, and was apparently going to pass me.A pair of black eyes flashed into mine, and the man turned quickly
and retraced his steps into the crowded street, where I lost sight of
him in a moment.This was the second time I had met his glance. I wondered what the
third would bring me. I felt a sort of superstition about it. Those
eyes had a knack of haunting one. They had pursued me before, both in my waking
and sleeping dreams, after I had seen them the first time. I felt sure
I was destined to be brought into contact with their owner in the
future, and thought of him more than once.But the business that occupied me during the next fortnight or
three weeks helped to banish the remembrance of him from my mind, and
an occurrence that happened at the end of that time drove him
completely from it for a period. I was beginning to get accustomed to
all the ins and outs of my new trade, and to find an exhilaration in
the variety of experiences that it brought me; and the proverbial good
luck that always waits on beginners had also not failed to attend my
first efforts.Mr. Leighton was so pleased with me that he doubled by commission
on a transaction I carried through with a well-known jeweller who was
noted for being difficult of approach. He said that I had shown great
skill and tact, and made an opening for future business, and insisted on my
profiting by it as well as himself.I had almost ceased to be nervous about my valuable charge, and on
the day that preceded the occurrence I speak of, I felt particularly
cheerful and confident.Mr. Leighton had intrusted to me a more valuable cargo than usual;
there were some black pearls of great price amongst the white ones,
and also a pink one of rare beauty that had already gained a name for
itself. I had made up my mind to surprise him when next I demanded an
interview, by telling him that I had placed
them all--I had one or two clients in my mind's eye, and amongst them
an Australian millionaire, whose latest fad, I had been told, was the
collection of quaint or unique gems.The pink pearl should be his; I had fully decided on that.One small incident occurred on the morning of that day, but I did
not attach any importance to it. I passed a man twice once in the
Strand, once in Regent Street; and noticing that he looked attentively at me,
wondered why his face seemed familiar, and where I could have seen him
before.Later I remembered that I had passed him on the hotel staircase one
day in the early part of the week, and concluded that this was the
reason for his apparent recognition of me, and mine of him. He had a
pale, fair, determined face, with a very unpleasant expression; that
was all that I remarked about him.I was rather tired when I went to bed that night, and I felt almost
inclined to leave the pearls, just as they were, in the hiding places
of my dress until the morning. But it was my rule to look at them,
count them, and so make sure of their safety, every night, and I would
not let myself break through it. I found them as I expected, all
there, safe and sound.Some sudden caprice made me stop when I was about to open my trunk
and put them inside the safe, and I changed my mind, and placed them
instead in a writing-case, the key of which I placed under the pillow
with my trunk
key, as well as the brooch containing my safe key.I looked to my window to see that the fastening was right, fixed on
to it, as usual, a small patent immoveable hasp, locked my door, and
placed a wedge against it, looked into my wardrobe and under my bed,
lit my night-light, and five minutes afterwards I was deeply and
soundly asleep.I dreamt that I was wandering at the bottom of the sea, and that
all around me lay wondrous gems of every hue and shape; strange
creatures floated near me with jewelled eyes; long seaweeds, fringed
with pearls and diamonds, clear and bright as drops of water, brushed
against my face, and twined themselves in my hair--it was a very
Paradise of pearls. I thought I gathered some of all kinds until my
hands and arms were laden, and soaring upwards with them through the
clear water, reached the top of the ocean, and felt the fresh wind
blowing on my face.And then quite suddenly I realised that I was wide awake, that the
room was in total darkness, and that a cold air was coming from the
direction of the window.I strained my eyes towards the vague outline of the curtain, I
strained my ears to catch the faintest sound, and in the silence, a
hand came stealing gently, stealthily, amongst the folds of the sheet
round my neck, feeling for my face, and an almost imperceptible rustle
told me that someone was kneeling beside me.My heart seemed to stop beating for one second, and then, with an
awful surging rush of sickening terror, throbbed to suffocation; the
pulses in my throat and head beat like iron sledge-hammers; I was too
paralysed to scream or move, and like lightning the thought flashed
through my brain of how absolutely helpless I was, through my own
agency. The door was not only locked, but wedged--even if I made
myself heard, they would have to force an entrance. I might pay the
penalty of my life for the sake of saving the pearls.As the stealthy fingers reached my lips, and drew aside the sheet,
a deadly faintness seized me; I was almost unconscious, when, with
a new thrill of
horror, I recognised the strong, sharp smell of chloroform, and knew
that something cold and wet was lying across my face.The shock recalled me to new life and courage. I have never been
rendered insensible by chloroform; I am strangely unsusceptible to it,
as I knew from more than one experience of it.For a minute or two there was a loud singing in my ears, a feeling
of alternately diminishing and swelling, with a sensation of floating
in air; then the effect had passed off, and I was absolutely
myself. My eyes, accustomed to the darkness, could discern over the
edge of the handkerchief a shadow that was bending over my trunk; the
keys had evidently been removed from my pillow; the tray had been
lifted out; the thief was now opening the safe. With a sigh of relief,
I remembered that the jewels were not there; every moment's delay was
precious to me. He would, of course, find the key of the
writing-desk--unless he had missed taking it from under my pillow--and
would try that next.Against the dark space of the open window I could see the
silhouette of a man's form, leaning on the ledge outside, apparently
resting on a ladder. The other man raised himself from the trunk,
looked towards the bed and approaching me, drew something from his
pocket. I remembered with a shudder that I had heard if you wanted to
bring people round who were under the influence of a drug, a sharp cut
with a knife was efficacious.He was close to me--he had removed the handkerchief; his fingers
were at my throat lightly pressing it; his other hand was raised. I
could bear it no longer--something in my brain seemed to snap. I
opened my lips to scream, when shrill and clear from the room above me
rang out an awful cry in a woman's voice, "Murder--Help!" The man made
one bound to the window, and gaining the sill, stood there hesitating,
and as shriek after shriek echoed through the hotel, and a sound of
hurrying steps and voices arose, he dropped his feet over the ledge,
and disappeared.I sprang out of bed, and staggered to the door, but my limbs failed me. I
could see the brightness of the electric light shining through the
chinks; I could hear the shrieks upstairs dying away to hysterical
sobs and laughter; I could distinguish that the voices and steps were
coming towards my room, and that someone was repeating my number, 13,
over and over again.I felt that I should die there in the darkness, with that dreadful
open window, in which I fancied I could still see the outline of a
man's form close to me. They were knocking, they were calling to me to
open the door.With a supreme effort I pushed the wedge aside, dragged myself up
to my knees, and turned the key, and as a flood of light and an
excited crowd of people burst in, I fell back
senseless.For many days I was too weak and ill to think much of that terrible
night, but gradually it recalled itself to me, and they told me how I
was saved.The lady who occupied the room above mine was in the habit--for
which I invoke fervent blessings on her head--of sleeping with her
window wide open, and mercifully had, on this particular night,
forgotten to open it. She therefore arose at about two o'clock in the
morning, and threw it up, putting out her head at the same time to see
if it was raining. Perceiving to her horror the crouching figure of a
man on the sill beneath, she proceeded to shriek until assistance
came.The thieves, of whom no trace has ever been found, had laid their
plans well; they must have concealed themselves during the day on the
roof, and had fastened a rope ladder to one of the chimneys; then
descending, had neatly cut out a pane from my window, removed my
patent hasp, and opened it.I did not wish, of course, for my future safety, to betray my
occupation to the public and I assured the hotel manager and the
police that I possessed only a few valuable jewels, and that I thought
the thieves might have mistaken my room for that of someone else. I
had little
doubt in my own mind that the man I had met on the hotel stairs and in
the Strand had been shadowing me, and had discovered that I was worth
robbing.Mr. Leighton was so upset when he heard of my adventure, that he
wished me to resign my post at once.But I pleaded so hard to be allowed to continue, that eventually I
won him over; as a concession to his fears for me, I gave up the
hotel, and took a flat in Victoria Street."No thieves can get at me here without my knowing it," I said; "I
shall be quite safe now."But I spoke a little too soon.CHAPTER II."WELL, Mrs. Delamere," said Mr. Leighton, as I entered his office
one day, "are you still determined to go on with your work; or has
your courage failed you now that you know the dangers of
pearl-broking?""I have plenty of courage still," was my answer, "and it would take
more than one alarm to make me give up my profession now that I have
seriously adopted it. I have sold the black pearls for the price you
wished they have gone over to the Continent to-day with a foreign
dealer, to be set in a pendant for a royal marriage. I have the pink
pearl yet to place, but I am reserving that for a special
mission. Will you let me have some white ones suitable for making a
necklace. I fancy I might do something with them."Mr. Leighton went to his safe, and unlocked it."I have not only the pearls here, but also the order for them--if
they suit," he said.He handed me a letter, of which at first I could make no sense, and
watched me with an amused smile while I puzzled over it. Suddenly the
solution of the puzzle came to me.The letter was written backwards after the fashion of Hindustani
and Persian epistles, and began with what I had at first taken for the
signature.It was couched in flowery and figurative language, difficult to
understand, but I succeeded in making out that it was a request for
some pearls, well matched and pure in colour, to be sent on approval
for the writer to see before purchasing. He required them, it stated,
for a Ranee of great wealth, who was willing to pay a high price for
the desire of her fancy. It concluded by naming an hour when he would
be ready to receive Mr. Leighton's emissary.The address was printed very legibly after the name: 14, Saint
Athelstane's Court. I lifted my head in surprise."Why," I said, "that is close here, Mr. Leighton!""Just opposite," he answered. "I suppose that is how my Oriental
friend came to think of me. It seems singular, though. These natives
generally deal with each other. I don't altogether like it. Perhaps it
would be better to let it slide."He could not have said anything more certain to resolve my own
doubts and indecision."Certainly not," I said. "I will take the pearls, and go to see Ali
Mahomed Khan to-morrow."Mr. Leighton would not give them to me at first."You must not be foolhardy, Mrs. Delamere," he said gravely. "I
begin to feel a little worried about your adventurous spirit. If any
serious harm comes to you, I shall never forgive myself. Give up this
particular quest to please me."But, partly from some impulse for which I could not account, and
yet could not resist, and partly from a sort of resentful pique that had taken
possession of me since my narrow escape at the hotel, I was not to be
shaken from my resolve.I carried off the pearls to my flat, and, placing them in the safe
which was let into the wall of the passage, slept the sleep of the
just and the unconcerned.I felt fully prepared the next morning for Ali Mahomed Khan, and I
did not doubt that it was he, or some person belonging to him, who had
made me the object of scrutiny on the day of any first visit to
Mr. Leighton's office. I recalled the swarthy face that had looked
down on me from the opposite house, and again the chance meeting at
the entrance posts.His interest in me was accounted for; he was, no doubt,
contemplating dealings with Mr. Leighton. I drove to the corner of
St. Athelstane's Court early in the afternoon, and sent the carriage
away, in order to avoid attracting attention, then quietly made my way
to No. 14, and knocked at the door. It was opened immediately, and in the dim passage
beyond I saw an ayah, who silently invited me to enter."Is Ali Mahomed Khan at home?" I said.She nodded. "Waiting for you," she answered in English. As I
stepped in, the door closed behind me, and I noticed, though it did
not make any special impression on me at the time, that there was no
visible lock or fastening--no more apparent mode of effecting exit from
the inside than there had been of entrance outside.The ayah passed in front of me to the stairs, and led me up four
long flights, our footsteps echoing dismally through the silence of
the house.At the top of the first flight, a window, so encrusted with dirt
that the panes were opaque, was slightly open, and through the space I
could set a narrow vista of deserted back yard.The rooms had evidently been used in former times as warehouses,
and through the doorless apertures we passed on the way up I saw rows
of empty shelves and cases.Everything spoke of disuse and oblivion, and I felt that I should
breathe more freely if I were a few yards off in the open street
again. Finally we stopped before a heavy dark curtain shrouding an
archway, and my guide, drawing back the folds with one hand, directed
me with the other to pass through an open door beyond.It was a singular transition from the desolate uncarpeted staircase
to a room covered with soft thick rugs, filled to repletion with every
sort of Oriental furniture and bric-a-brac, the
atmosphere heavy with mingled scents--of sandal-wood, kuskus, lacquer,
and attar-of-roses.For a moment, as I entered, it seemed to stifle me, and I felt a
little dizzy.There were two men in the room--one plainly dressed, small and
lithe, with a keen, handsome face, who was writing at a table; the
other, more elaborate in his attire, seated on some cushions, a tray
with cups of coffee and dishes of sweetmeats at his side.He looked steadfastly at me, and I recognised the strangely
brilliant eyes whose glance, encountered twice before, had left such a vivid
imprint on my mind.He rose quietly and came to meet me."Mrs. Delamere, I think?" he said politely.I bowed."This is my friend, Abdullah," he continued, indicating the man at
the writing-table, then in a tone of authority, "give Mrs. Delamere a
chair."The man wheeled a low armchair forward, and I sat down.I remember thinking as I did so, that I should be glad when our
interview was over, and that, in the event of any difference of
opinion arising between us as to terms, I should close the transaction
at once and take my departure."You wished to look at some pearls," I said. "Mr. Leighton handed
your letter to me and I--""Pardon me," he made a courteous gesture of interruption. "You will
first take a little coffee?"He handed one of the cups to me."Thank you, no," I answered; "I never take coffee.""At least some of these," he said, lifting one of the little
dishes."I would rather not, thank you," I answered again, and as he
frowned a little, I added apologetically, "I am not fond of
sweets."The frown deepened, and he said slowly:"We do not understand your Western ways. In our country, business
is conducted with preliminary compliments, and to refuse a proffered
hospitality is an affront. May I not persuade you to take one."He was still holding the dish towards me, and I wavered. If I
refused again, possibly he would take offence and decline to treat
with me. It would be a pity to lose the chance of a sale that meant
such a large profit to me, and that would greatly advance my prestige
with Mr. Leighton.The sweets looked very harmless; there were some small red and
amber jujubes, dusted with sugar, that were probably made of Rahat
Lakoum. I could at least take one of them, and then my Oriental friend would, I
suppose, proceed to business.We were all silent as I took the sweet and ate it, and in the
stillness I heard the door, which was behind me, gently closed from
the outside, and the faint sound of retreating foot-falls on the
stairs. A sudden perception of danger came to me with so violent a
shock that I involuntarily swallowed the remainder of the sweetmeat,
though at that very instant I had noticed an unusual taste which came
from a little nut in the centre of it.I glanced towards the two men; they were both looking down on the
ground, their faces devoid of expression, politely waiting my
leisure. For a moment I was reassured, then again doubt assailed me. I
looked round the room; was there any window through which I could call
for assistance if anything untowards occurred?Both windows were blocked up half way with heavy inlaid cabinets,
above which only the upper panes were visible.My heart began to beat a little fast; I felt that I must summon all
my courage, and direct my attention to business with the hope of
getting through it quickly and departing. All this flashed through my
mind while I passed my handkerchief over my lips and cleared my throat
to speak."If you will kindly tell me which stones you would like to see,"
were the words I essayed to utter, but with the first syllables my
voice broke and died away.I had no sense of pain, but a strange difficulty of articulation
had suddenly taken possession of me: any throat felt cold and dead; my
tongue lay lifeless in my mouth and refused to do its office. I
realised, with an awful throb of terror, that my speech was paralysed,
and for an instant the room swam round me, and I thought that I must
faint.But the very intensity of my alarm, and the uncertainty of what
precise danger threatened me, steadied any nerves and kept me
conscious.Ali Mahomed raised his eyes, and said, in a quiet, measured
way:"Do not try to speak; it will not be possible to you for the next
two hours. That sweet contained a small quantity of the active principle of
coca--for the present your throat and tongue are paralysed."You are a brave woman, or you would have lost your senses when you
found that you had lost your voice. But you have no need to be
alarmed--I do not seek your life, nor do I desire to rob you. My
motives are quite different. Do you wish to learn them, or will you do
exactly as I tell you without seeking to inquire the reason?"He read the answer in my eyes."Very well. I am quite willing to tell you. But first, if you will
drink some of this"--he lifted a liqueur glass from the tray--"it will
give you confidence; it is only an ordinary restorative."I shook my, head. I would trust him no further. It might be
drugged, and I must keep my senses clear, or all chance of escape
would be over."I am a native of Kabalpur. Here I am no one; I pursue my business
unremarked. In my own country I have much influence and renown, and when there is a
difficult thing to be done men come to me. Abdullah there is in my
power, and bound to me by many ties; therefore, he does as I bid him,
and, with his assistance and that of Guzra Bai downstairs, I defy even
your London police." All the while he was speaking I was striving to
keep my attention concentrated on his words, and not to allow it to
dwell on my own terrible sensations.The feeling of powerlessness that had come to me with my loss of
voice was intense--the shock had left me weak and unstrung, and I felt
as if I must burst into tears; but my determination to keep calm, and
avail myself of the first opportunity for release that might come, was
so strong that it upheld me, and kept me outwardly quiet."I have been watching you closely for some time past,
Mrs. Delamere," the smooth voice went on, "and I know your history
well. You have few relations; none near enough to busy themselves in
inquiry after you at once if you should disappear suddenly. By the
time they
realise that you are not to be found you will be safe in Kabalpur, or
well on your way there. The servants at your flat would, of course,
give the alarm if you did not return to-night, but you will explain
your absence satisfactorily in a note to them which you will write
here, and which Abdullah will send presently. With regard to your
occupation, of which I have ascertained all the details, and which has
provided me with the means of obtaining this interview without
difficulty, your employer, Mr. Leighton, will not expect to hear from
you for a day or two. It rests with you to decide what you will write
to him. Since you sell the jewels for a commission, it can no longer
matter to you whether they are sold or not; you will not be in a
position to receive the profit. If you have them all with you here,
the matter is easy. You will write a note resigning your post, and
returning the jewels. If on the contrary you have some in the safe at
your flat, it will be best to say that you have sold them, and to
enclose the necessary amount. I can arrange for a cheque from my agents here. You
understand that my motive is not robbery."He paused for a moment. I endeavoured to say something in reply;
useless--I was still absolutely dumb. I looked round the room
again. Was there no possible outlet through which help might come?His glance followed mine, and for the first time he smiled."If it were possible for you to escape and you did so,
Mrs. Delamere," he said, "I should have no fear of you. For your own
sake you would never reveal the danger you had run. It would double
the risks, already rather great ones, of your profession. It would
encourage everyone to take advantage of you; in fact, Mr. Leighton
himself would refuse to let you incur them any more. But escape is
impossible. Put the thoughts of it aside. You know, or you may not
know, that some years ago, in an attack of the hill tribes on a
cantonment, a young and beautiful English woman was believed to have
perished in the flames of a burning bungalow. This was, however, a
mistake. She was captured while insensible by some of my countrymen,
and was carried to the Rajah's palace. She has remained there as his
wife ever since, and, though her son cannot inherit the throne, he is
the Rajah's favourite child. The Rajah is very much attached to her,
and since she pines for her own country and her own people, to which
he cannot permit her ever to return, he has thought that it might add
to her happiness if she had a companion of her own race. He has
commissioned me to arrange this for him. The lady is to be of good
birth, young and handsome, clever and high spirited--a dull companion
would be useless. She must be one who would not be quickly missed or
sought after, as all traces of her must be obliterated, and the
transaction must never become known. You fulfil all the requirements,
and my intentions are to disguise you as a native woman, passing you
off as Guzra Bai's sister, and to return to Kabalpur with you at
once. It will be necessary to keep you to a certain extent under the
influence of
drugs, which, for the time, will deprive you of memory and the desire
to escape. They will not injure you nor give you pain, and when you
arrive at your destination you will regain your usual state. You will
be treated always with the greatest kindness, and there is no reason
why your life should not be a happy one."Now will you write the letter to your servants?"I nodded assent. I saw that my only chance was to appear
submissive, and to gain time--above all, to put off the moment when
they would give me the drug of which he spoke.Abdullah placed the table and writing materials before me and I
took up the pen to write.At that moment there was a subdued knock, and he went hastily to
the door and held a whispered colloquy with the ayah, whose voice I
recognised.Ali Mahomed listened attentively, and then said something in his
own language, which sounded like an interrogation.Abdullah's reply evidently was unpleasant to him, and they argued
for some moments. Finally, Abdullah gained his point, and left the
room with the ayah. I heard their descending steps with a new sinking
at my heart. Was I, then, to be left absolutely alone with this awful
man?He came slowly towards me; then, struck by some new idea, passed
out on to the landing, and called softly down to the others. Guzra
Bai's voice answered him from the bottom of the house.Now was my chance my only chance! I rose for an instant my brain
went round; I trembled so that my limbs failed me then, desperately, I
pulled myself together. It was for life and liberty, I thought. I
crept towards the curtain. Ali Mahomed was evidently bending over the
stairs, still speaking. I drew the curtain aside his back was towards
me. Now! In a flash I was past him and down the first flight. As I
turned the corner he was so close behind me that his fingers caught
the lace of my cloak. The force of my descent tore it away, and I reached the
next landing with almost one bound. He was calling Guzra Bai. I could
hear her beginning to ascend. I was at the end of the third flight,
she was midway up the second, and he with hands outstretched within a
few feet of me at the back. The staircase window was half open now,
and a long yard extended below it, with a high wall all round and a
door at the end.I jumped from the last step straight on to the sill and dropped. I
was conscious of no sensation at all as I did so. The peril was too
imminent and deadly for me to realise that I was taking a leap of
about sixteen feet, and the force with which I reached the ground
almost stunned me, and sent a thrill of pain all through me. But
instinctively I picked myself up, and ran straight on to the door,
and, stumbling, fell against it. The latch, old and worn, gave way
with my weight--the door opened afterwards--I staggered through--thank
God! I was in a narrow alley leading to a street.I reached the top of it, and as I did so saw Abdullah coming
towards me, and within a few paces of me.With a strangled scream I turned and fled in the opposite
direction, the few passers-by stopping and staring at me as I ran. I
think if they had tried to stop me, I should have been done for. My
strength was almost spent, and a mist was gathering before my eyes. A
hansom loitering across the top of the street stopped; I signalled to
the man, pointed up the turning he had just quitted and jumped in. As
he whipped the horse, and we backed and turned, I saw Abdullah halt a
few yards off, and then retreat.I had dropped my card-case at some time during my flight, but I had
a letter in my pocket, and pushing up the trap door I handed the
envelope to the cabman.Then I burst into tears, and I can only remember dimly, as in a
dream, arriving at royal Mansions, Victoria Street, and hurrying up to
my flat, where the maids, shocked and distressed at my condition, vainly sought for
some time an explanation of it.When I at last regained my voice, and told them that some cocaine,
taken by mistake, had deprived me of it temporarily, they concluded
that I had been to a dentist, and that my sufferings at his hands
accounted for my state of nervous exhaustion.As Ali Mahomed had wisely said, I did not care to make public my
terrible experience with him, since it would have seriously damaged my
chances in my profession; and when, after a fortnight's rest, I went
to see Mr. Leighton, I merely said that my Oriental interview had been
unsuccessful, and that the price offered for the jewels was
inadequate.But I mentally resolved to be more wary in my business appointments
in the future.CHAPTER III."So your Oriental venture proved a failure,. Mrs. Delamere?" said
Mr. Leighton, interrogatively, when I called at his office. "There are
disappointments even in pearl-broking, are there not?""Blessed are they who expect not, for they shall not be
disappointed," I answered flippantly.He was looking at me keenly, and I was anxious to avoid all
questions on the subject of my interview with Ali Mahomed Khan. I
could scarcely think of it yet without shuddering. I believe
Mr. Leighton saw that the reference was a distasteful one, for he
changed the subject, and showed me some pearls that had lately come
in, explaining their demerits, which to an outsider would have been
inappreciable, and finally arranging that I should see the head of a large
wholesale jeweller's firm and do some business with him.Then we said good-bye, and I left the office, with his parting
injunction ringing in my ears. "I do not think," he said, "there can
be any great risk attached to these next projects of yours, but I
confess to having an uneasy feeling about you sometimes, and I hope
you will under no circumstances be venturesome. Be discreet--I ask it
as a personal favour, Mrs. Delamere--and be distrustful of
everyone."It was a lovely day; after driving part of the way home, I felt
inclined for a walk, and, getting out, sent the carriage away.I had the jewels with me certainly , but they were in their usual
hiding places--and unless some accident happened to me, quite
safe. They were, too, though fairly valuable, not so precious as some
of my former parcels had been. The best was the large pink pearl, for
which I had refused many offers--I meant to get a high price for it. I
had just dismissed all anxiety from my mind, and was revelling in a
vision of fair millinery at the Maison Nouvelle, when a child's clear voice, speaking
in French, made me look round. A brougham was drawn up opposite the
shop, and leaning out of the window was a little girl with a most
charming face, framed in a picturesque tangle of dark curls surmounted
by a pink silk bonnet.I have a weakness for pretty children in pretty bonnets, and I was
interested at once."Tiens, maman," said the eager voice, "regards cette jolie poupée là bas. Je veux
bien la voir, laisse moi descendre."A woman with a sweet foreign face, who was just passing by me into
the shop, stopped and looked back, shaking her finger."Tu ne peux pas descendre, Cléo, attends,
je reviendrai à tantôt." And she went on into the
shop.The little face clouded over; Mdlle. Cléo looked wrathful;
apparently she was accustomed to have her own way and at once.I watched her with an amused smile as she opened the carriage door
and jumped out; I supposed she was going to run after her mother and
remonstrate. But instead she ran round at the back of the brougham,
and was half across the road towards the attractive doll-shop, when
there was a sharp tinkle from a bicyclist and a shout from an omnibus
driver, both of whom were bearing down upon her from opposite
directions. I had involuntarily moved to follow her from the first,
and as this happened and the child hesitated in bewilderment, I ran
forward.Her momentary pause was fatal. The omnibus and the bicycle
continued their progress, and, with a little cry of terror, she was
darting right under the horses' heads, when I in hot pursuit caught
her arm and pulled her back. Simultaneously the front wheel of the
bicycle caught my dress and whirled me off my feet, dashing me
violently to the ground. My head struck the curb and I was
stunned.When I came to myself the usual crowd was surrounding me, and a
policeman, in whose arms I was supported, said kindly: "That's right,
miss; now, if you can hold up, there's a chemist over the way; he'll
soon put you right."I staggered to my feet, feeling sick and dizzy, and realized that a
handkerchief was bound over my forehead, and that the latter was cut
and bleeding.I was only too glad to take refuge in the chemist's shop, where the
cut on my head, a very slight one really, was properly bathed and
plastered, and whence, after the attentions of the crowd had been
gently but firmly repulsed from the doorway by my policeman, I emerged
feeling almost myself again.As I did so, a brougham drew up close to me and a lady got out. I
recognised her as the mother of the child, and she hurrying up to me,
held out both her hands and caught mine in them."How can I thank you," she exclaimed in broken English, "for your
goodness, your nobleness in saving Cléo. You will let me drive
you home. Oh! but you must; you are not fit to go alone. I am so
ashamed to think I have not been with you, but I was so occupied with
Cléo at first, and when I found she was unharmed we looked for
you, and you were gone.""She is quite safe?" I asked. "Not hurt at all?""Not hurt at all," was the answer, "only frightened, the naughty
little one. Do come and see for yourself." She drew me to the
carriage, and, as I felt rather weak and trembling, I yielded to her
persuasions and got in.The little girl was still sobbing, and as one or two witnesses of
the scene loitered round the carriage, she clung to her mother,
imploring to be taken away from the men who stared."Drive on," said the lady, and for a few moments she occupied
herself in quieting the child; then she turned to me."I do so hope you are feeling better," she said. "I do not know how
to express my gratitude--will you tell me your name?--I feel that I
owe my child's life to you.""It was nothing," I said, "I was watching your little girl at the
moment and happened to see her danger--that was all. Anyone else would
have done the same. If you will kindly drive me home I should be very
grateful to
you. My head aches a little, but I shall be all right as soon as I get
home and lie down."She pulled the check-string. "Where shall I tell him to drive?" she
said.And even as she said it, her face faded away from me, and I sank
back fainting.I remembered nothing more, until I awakened to find myself lying on
a sofa in a room that was strange to me, and it was some time before I
could collect my thoughts sufficiently to recall what had happened
before I was brought there.At last it all came back to me, and, sitting up on the couch, I
looked round for someone to question. But I was quite alone.My hat, jacket, and bodice had been taken off, and were lying on a
chair close by; on another chair were salts, a bottle of sal volatile,
some brandy in a wine-glass, and eau-de-Cologne.The room was a boudoir, exquisitely furnished, and hung with rose
silk draperies, festooned here and there to display panelled
mirrors. A book on one of the tables attracted my attention; I took it
up and looked at the fly leaf. "Amélie Berthe de Mérgas" was
written in thin foreign writing, and above in bolder characters: "A la Comptesse, hommages."So! my invisible hostess, doubtless the mother of Cléo, was
a countess, or was at all events called so. And this was an offering
from some admirer.But where was she, and why was I left alone?It seemed a little odd. I recalled at the moment Mr. Leighton's
injunctions. Be discreet and distrustful.Heavens! I hoped my jewels were safe.At the thought my energy returned. I dressed hastily, and examined
my hidden pockets for the stones. They were all there except one--the
pink pearl was missing!I looked for a bell to ring, but could see none--then I went to the
door. I would find someone if possible, I thought--at all events I
would not waste another moment there. The door was locked--and on the
outside. All my lurking uneasiness took shape when I found that I was
a prisoner, and I seemed to suddenly understand that something strange was going to
happen to me; that what had occurred already was a sort of preliminary
which seemed to be leading up to some approaching climax.There was a window, but when I looked out I found that a descent
from it would be impossible--it was too high up, and beneath was a
court-yard with a high wall all round it.I do not know what made me go straight to one of the mirrors, when
I turned in despair from the window, and, pulling aside the rose-silk
curtain, press my fingers on a knob that was concealed under it.It was a veritable intuition. The knob slid into a groove, and, the
mirror receding, showed me a passage with a glass door at the end of
it.I walked along it, and looked through. There were curtains hanging
at the other side, but they were parted, and between them I could see
a large oblong table, round which sat nine men, one at the head and
four on each side.The one at the top of the table was leaning his head on his hands,
and I could not see his face.The others were talking together.For a minute or two their words were indistinguishable then, as my
ear grew accustomed to their voices, I found I could hear what they
were saying."It is the rule of the society," said one man, with a dark,
dangerous-looking face; "do we make rules to break them?""There are exceptions to all rules," broke in another, whose face
and voice were both much more pleasant than the first speaker's. I
moved to get a clearer view of him. He looked little more than a lad;
a handsome, well-bred face that seemed familiar to me."In this case," he continued, "the intrusion has been an
involuntary one. It is impossible that there could be any plot
connected with it. The whole affair happened by chance. The lady was
absolutely unconscious, and has not yet regained her senses. Is it not
so, Countess?"The changed inflection of his voice in the last sentence betrayed a
sentimental interest in the person he addressed.To my surprise, the reply was in the Countess's own voice. She was
there, then; I could not see her, as my limited range of vision only
permitted a clear view of those in the direct line of the door."She has not yet recovered; I have left her in my room, and the
door is locked. None of the household know she is there. It would be
easy to remove her before she comes to herself, and I would greatly
prefer it to the other alternatives. Remember, gentlemen, she has just
saved my child's life.""Of course, if sentiment is allowed to weigh with the society--"
began the dark man, with a sneer.But he was interrupted by a murmur of disapproval from several of
the others, and a unanimous demand for a speech from the
president.The man sitting alone at the end of the table, of whom I could only
just catch an oblique glimpse, slowly raised his head from his hands,
and looked round at his colleagues.I caught my breath, and almost betrayed my presence by an audible
cry.The sight of his face made the whole thing, and the danger of it,
clear to me at once.I had fallen literally into a "den of thieves."The president was the man who had tried to chloroform and rob me at
the hotel.He looked pale and harassed, and spoke in a tired tone."Let us review the matter," he said, "and put it to the vote. My
wife arrives home to-day with a strange lady, in a state of
insensibility. She tells us that the lady rescued our child when on
the point of being run over. The countess offered in gratitude to
drive her to her own house, but the lady fainted before giving her
address. There was, therefore, no choice but to bring her here. If my
wife drives her at once to a doctor's house it will no doubt be easy
for him to restore her, and she can then go home. Even if she should
recover before starting, or during the time that she is carried
downstairs and placed in the carriage, I do not see that there could
possibly be any danger to the society. If you insist on the observance
of the rule, we shall have to wait until she is conscious, and to have her
brought before us here; when, after being informed of our existence,
which seems to me wholly unnecessary, she will be given her choice of
two courses, either to become one of us, or to forfeit her life. The
latter alternative is one we have never had to contemplate yet, and
seems to me to involve us in a far more serious danger. However, I put
it to the vote."There was a dead silence for a few moments. I do not know how to
describe my own sensations during this interval; I felt as if the
whole occurrence must be a dream, or as if it were happening to
someone else, and I was merely a spectator. I did not attempt to make
any plan! I simply waited for their decision.The silence was broken by the Countess, who said hurriedly:"Gentlemen, I hope you will consider me in this matter. Some of you
have children of your own. Imagine your feelings if you were obliged
to repay the saviour of your child's life by forcing on her the choice
you speak of. I cannot believe that you will place me in such a position. There
is honour I have been told even among--"But she was interrupted fiercely by the dark man."Do you wish to insult us, madam?" he cried, springing to his
feet."Silence," said the fair boy, also standing up, "I will complete
the Countess's sentence, and you can direct your questions to
me. There is honour even among thieves."As he spoke, I suddenly remembered him; he was the son of an old
friend of mine, a man who was proud of a good old name, untarnished
and well-known. I had heard of this boy's gambling proclivities, but
nothing worse of him. We had met sometimes in society--I had even
danced with him. I wondered idly whether I should ever have the chance
of meeting him in society again. It did not seem like it--nevertheless
it was to be so."Your votes, gentlemen," said the president.As he spoke, a slight sound behind me made me turn; and I saw
Cléo standing in the aperture left by the open panel in the
boudoir.If she spoke I was lost! I hurried to her, putting my finger to her
lips, and gently pushing her inside the room, was about to close the
panel, when the door was quickly unlocked, and the Countess
entered.She saw at a glance what had happened, and turned as white as
death."You have been listening?" she said breathlessly. "You know? Then
what am I to do?"She told me quickly that the majority of the votes were against me
in one respect; that is to say, if I were still unconscious I was to
go free--if otherwise I was to appear before the council."I must return to them in a few minutes," she said, "and I will not
give you up to them. What can I do?"She wrung her hands in distress, but Cléo pulled at her arm
and whispered something."Yes, that might do," the Countess said, "that must do. See! the child will confess that she
unlocked the door and came in to you during my absence--and that you
asked her to show you the way out as you were anxious to get home. When you
find yourself in the road, turn quickly to the right and walk across
the heath to some red houses, where they will direct you to a station
close by. I will tell my husband you have taken the other
road. Promise me never to betray us--remember, though you have done
much for me, I have done much for you, and that it would mean ruin to
me and mine.""I promise," I said, and she put her arms round my neck and kissed
me.Then, guided by the child, I made my way quietly down a back
staircase, and through a side door into the road, and afraid even to
look back, I hurried away across the heath as she had directed me.When I reached the row of red brick villas that fringed the common,
I asked which was my nearest station, and found, to my great relief,
that I was close to one on the District Railway, and that I should be
at home in half-an-hour. I have never told, and I shall never tell to
anyone, the name of that station, nor any detail that could lead to
the recognition of that house where, for a time, my life hung in the
balance. My promise is sacred to me for the sake of "the Countess" and
little Cléo, who had both won my heart.My grief at the loss of the pink pearl was very great, but it did
not last long; for before I had time to communicate it to Mr. Leighton
I received a registered letter by post, and found to my joy it
contained the pearl.A small type-written paper inside held these words:"My husband recognised you when he carried you into the house, and
I am therefore able to trace your name and address. He wishes me to
restore this to you, and to assure you that you are perfectly safe
from any kind of danger at his hands in future. None of the others
know who you are, and he will never tell them. Cléo happens to
be the only thing in the world he cares about, and his gratitude
therefore equals mine. We are your friends henceforth, and we trust to
your honour that you will be ours."So my third adventure ended very quietly after all, and I began to hope
that it would be my last, for my taste for unusual experiences was
greatly modified since I began pearl-broking.I had fancied till then that in London one must be absolutely safe,
but there are many hidden tragedies there, submergences that make no
ripple on the surface; and although my experience of a very dangerous
society was personally a unique one, I believe that this superior
Association of Gentlemen Burglars is not by any means the only one,
nor the most unscrupulous, that lives and thrives in and near our
law-ridden city.CHAPTER IV.I GAVE myself a holiday for a few days after my involuntary
exploration of the Society of Gentlemen Thieves, and then I turned my
attention steadily to work again, and accomplished a great deal of
business to my own and Mr. Leighton's satisfaction. It had taken me
about three weeks to finish a commission entrusted to me by the head
of a Bond Street firm for a necklace of pearls, three rows in
graduated sizes, and I was much pleased when after matching those in
the last row, over which I had had a somewhat unusual difficulty, I
took them to Bond Street, and handed them to the senior partner."These will do nicely," he said, "our customer is very particular,
and will criticise every pearl separately. But these are
perfect."I was rising to go, when an assistant came in with a small
ring-case, and asked for some directions as to its being sent off. The
senior partner opened the case, and showed me the ring, asking me if I
did not think it very nice."It is splendid," I said. "It makes me feel quite covetous."The five diamonds, as large as could possibly be worn in a ring,
were beautifully set and of a most dazzling lustre."A wedding present?" I said interrogatively, as I handed it
back."A betrothal ring," he answered, "sent for in a hurry. It is the
lady's birthday to-night, and, as the engagement is to be announced at
a dinner party, she wished to have her ring. It had to be made smaller
for her.""I wonder if it can be Miss Somers-Brand," I said, "it is her
birthday to-day, and they are giving a large dinner to which I am
going. If so I hope it is to Sir Charles Merivale."The senior partner smiled."Sir Charles is an old customer of ours, and his father and
grandfather were before him," he said. "His bride will not need to envy anyone's
jewels. We are doing up the family rubies now."I felt sure, though my question had received an indirect reply,
that my surmise was correct. Sir Charles' devotion to Miss
Somers-Brand from the first moment of their meeting at her coming-out
ball had been apparent to everyone. But though she was very pretty and
charming she was undowered, and people had wondered whether such a
very desirable parti, both as to rank, and
riches, as Sir Charles Merivale would select her from the many
eligible young ladies amongst whom he might have chosen.I saw that I was right in my guess as soon as I arrived at the
Brands' house that night. Amidst a group of men on the hearthrug,
Mr. Somers-Brand and Sir Charles Merivale stood conversing together
with marked cordiality, the latter beaming with the assured and
triumphant happiness of a newly-engaged man.Nellie Brand, all pink chiffon and blushes, came forward to shake
hands with me, and when I laughingly lifted her left hand and looked at the ring
sparkling in all its pristine beauty on the third finger, she blushed
still more, and nodded an affirmative to my unspoken question.There were a great many people present--it was a party of
twenty-four--and I was the last to arrive, so that I had not time to
notice all the other guests, and almost immediately after my entrance
we paired off and went downstairs.I was taken in by the son of the house, and as he and I were
friends of long standing, and had not met for some time, we were
occupied at first in giving a mutual account of ourselves, and getting
as it were "up to date " with each other.Now and then the voice of a man seated on the same side of the
table as myself, and hidden from me by the intervening couples, broke
in and arrested my attention. It was a familiar voice certainly, but
besides that it gave me an odd feeling of anxiety.Where had I heard it last? It was associated with some
uncomfortable experience I felt sure; but when and how?I glanced in the direction of it once or twice, but I could not
catch the man's face.At last it worried me so that I said to Tom Brand:"Tell me who is sitting on our side of the table? There's a voice I
recognise, and I cannot fit the person to it."He mentioned the names of the four couples, and I stopped him at
the last."Of course," I said, in a sort of surprise, "Gerard Beverley! Why,
dear me, he is a--"I broke off suddenly, realising the betrayal of which I was on the
verge.Tom smiled at my apparently unnecessary excitement and confusion."He is a son of old Admiral Beverley," he said, "and he is a
confounded young fool; throws all his money away on betting, and gets
into no end of scrapes; but I don't know anything worse of him than
that. Why do you look so horrified about him? You knew him when he was
a lad down in Hampshire, didn't you?""Yes," I answered, "I knew them all quite well; I loved
Mrs. Beverley; she was such a sweet, gracious old lady, and so devoted
to her boys. What a grief Gerard must be to her."Tom laughed again."Oh, he is only a scrapegrace; he'll get over it some of these
days, I expect. You seem very down on him, Mrs. Delamere, which is not
like you--you are generally so charitable. Has he been so unlucky as
to offend you?""No," I said, "quite the contrary. But I happen to know something
about him which I would greatly prefer not to know. I would not say
even so much as that to you, but it just occurs to me that perhaps you
could look after him a little. You know his people better even than I
do. Could you manage to convey to them that he wants a very great deal
of looking after, much more than they think; and that the kindest
thing they could do to him, would be to pay all his debts--for I am
sure he must have many--and send him out to some definite work
abroad. Will you try to do this?""I certainly will if you are as much in earnest as you seem to be,"
he replied; "you shall tell me just what you want me to do presently
when we can have a quiet talk together."At this moment there was a little stir, and a buzz of louder
conversation.We had reached the dessert stage, and an old friend of the family
had insisted on proposing a toast--"the engaged couple."We all looked and spoke our compliments to them, and Sir Charles
Merivale said a word or two of thanks for himself and Nellie, and then
someone asked to see her ring, and she took it off and handed it round
for general inspection.It passed Tom and me, and I handed it on to my next door neighbour;
then our attention was attracted by an exciting story of an Indian
loot, told by an old general who had taken part in it, and whose
recollections were aroused by the brilliance of Nellie's diamond
ring.The whole party listened to the story--a stirring one and
well-told--and it was not till the general had concluded, and the comments were
subsiding that Nellie said with a laugh: "Please may I have my ring
back now? My finger is catching cold."There was a little murmur of reply, and then she said in a decisive
voice:"But I have not got it, indeed; it has never come back to me."Several people began looking about, moving the plates and
wine-glasses; one or two sitting near Nellie stopped and looked on the
floor; finally, Mr. Brand rang the bell for the butler, and Nellie,
getting up, shook her dress, thinking it might have fallen into the
folds.But the ring was not forthcoming!It came upon me with a sort of shock that I knew with absolute
certainty where the ring was, and yet that it was impossible for me to
reveal my knowledge, because such a revelation would have made me a
traitor, though indirectly, towards someone who claimed my loyalty,
and would--though in justice to myself, I must say this was a
secondary consideration to me--have been very dangerous to me.A complete search was made all over the room for the ring; each one
saying in turn that it had been passed on to the next person at the
table.When, after an interval of ten minutes it was still invisible, a
sort of hush fell over the whole party, and the extreme unpleasantness
of the situation dawned on most of them.I say most of them, because I knew that there were two people whose
feelings were totally different to those of the others, and one of
those two was myself."I don't know what to do," said Mr. Somers-Brand at last; "it is a
most extraordinary thing, and seems like magic. The ring seems to have
disappeared from the face of the earth."He looked appealingly round at his guests; it was really a most
awkward predicament. Mrs. Brand seemed inclined to make a move to the
drawing room.I felt desperate; I seemed such a traitor either way.A thought occurred to me; I spoke a few words rapidly to
Tom.Fortunately I knew him well enough to feel assured that he would
not misconstrue my agitation.He interposed at once between his mother and the door."Don't go, mother," he said, "stay and help us to solve this
problem. Who else was in the room besides you?" he continued, turning
to the butler."Only William, sir," that decorous official replied, with the
imperturbable demeanour which is so admirable in butlers."Ring for William," said Tom.As soon as William, the footman, had made a sheepish appearance,
Tom proceeded to address the whole company."With my father's permission," he said, "I will make a suggestion,
and I hope that you will all approve of it, and that you will
appreciate the motives I have in making it. It is this. That the door
should be locked and the key held by my father; that we should all
resume our places at table; and that the lights should then be turned
off. That after a minute or two they should be turned on again. I should like
to say that I have a theory about the disappearance of the ring which
I am anxious to prove. If this way is unsuccessful I shall suggest
another. But I fully believe that when the lights are turned on the
ring will be visible."I apologize to you all for asking you to do this, but I feel
certain that you would all prefer that the ring should now be found,
if possible. Do you agree to my suggestion?"Apparently everyone did, and it was carried out in every
detail.When the electric lights flashed up again we were all dazzled for
an instant, after our temporary eclipse, and looked vaguely at each
other as though we expected to see the ring suspended in mid air or
lurking in some unusual place like a conjuring trick.Then Nellie Brand gave a little glad cry, and, stooping forward,
picked the ring out from the folds of yellow ribbon that meandered
about amongst the flowers in the centre of the table."Ah!" said Tom, with an accent of relief, 'a practical joke as I
thought, and very cleverly played! Now, mother, we will consent to
part with you."He telegraphed to me a look of grateful acknowledgment as I passed
out of the room; I saw him turn and go towards Gerard Beverley.I had no need to be assured by the ghastly look on the boy's face
that he was a thief, for from the moment that Tom told me to whom the
voice, so oddly familar to me, belonged, I had identified him with the
Countess's impetuous champion in the Gentlemen Burglars' Club, on the
memorable occasion when I was the unwilling witness of one of their
meetings, and when the question of my escape with life and honour hung
and trembled in the balance.Scarcely any other subject was spoken of either in the
drawing-room, or, as I heard from Tom afterwards, in the dining-room
that evening.Many were the surmises as to the perpetrator of the joke, or the
theft, that had made such a sensation, but neither Tom nor I betrayed our
knowledge.When we managed to have a few quiet words together just before I
left, I explained to him the suggestion I had made, and which he had
adopted by saying that I had heard of it being done, and with the same
successful result on a very similar occasion.But I did not acknowledge to him, either then or later, that I knew
Gerard Beverley to be a thief, for I felt that to do so might lead
eventually to the discovery of the club, and that I should then have
broken faith with my kind little "Countess."Nevertheless, I cannot doubt that Tom guessed the real state of
affairs for himself; he told me that he saw Gerard home that night,
and took the opportunity of having a serious talk with him.The wretched young fellow completely broke down, confessed he was
in worse trouble than anyone imagined, and, only after immense
persuasion, consented to make a clean breast of it to his
father.Poor old Admiral Beverley collected all his son's debts, settled
them up, got him a berth as overseer in one of the new South African
settlements, and told Tom, the last time they met, that Gerard was
writing more hopefully and reasonably than he had ever done before,
and that they hoped to make a decent fellow of him yet.The ruffled complacency of the dinner guests of that evening was
restored when they heard that both the butler and footman had given
indignant warning to the Somers-Brands the very next day."You may be quite sure," said Sir Charles Merivale to me
subsequently, "that the butler and footman were in league, and it was
one of there who took it. They got frightened when Tom suggested his
experiment, and were afraid of a search coming next; so they decided
to put it back. It was a clever idea of Tom's--saved any disturbance,
and restored to Nellie her ring without any more fuss!"I smiled demurely. For the "clever idea" was a happy inspiration
that I have often congratulated myself upon since then.CHAPTER V.IN spite of the fact that there were frequently in my safe jewels
sufficiently valuable to make it well worth the while of a
professional burglar to invade my flat, I had never experienced the
least nervousness on the subject.A flat always seems so safe and self-contained! When you close your
front door you seem to shut yourself up in your castle and pull up a
metaphorical drawbridge between yourself and the world, and there is
an added sense of security in the knowledge that though enclosed in
your own domain you are not really isolated, and there are human
beings within call at your desire.My safe, a small unostentatious one, was let into the wall of my
bedroom, and the door of it draped with a little frivolous hanging
curtain of art muslin tied up with knots of ribbon, which imparted to it the
guileless appearance of a medicine cupboard. I flattered myself that
to the casual eye there would seem to be nothing more valuable behind
those delicate folds than sal-volatile, and that no one would imagine
a small fortune often lay concealed there.I had only two maid-servants--sisters. Comely, honest country
girls, for whom I had sent to the Hampshire village, where I had spent
my youth, and whom I knew to be thoroughly trustworthy. Having
cautioned them in a general way not to pick up chance acquaintances,
nor to gossip too much with their neighbours, I felt a tranquil
assurance of safety.But I confess to having now and then an uneasy feeling that it was
time for me to have another adventure of some sort, a vague
presentiment of something unpleasant in store for me; and I was
especially careful in all my business appointments and meetings.My employer, Mr. Leighton, had just received a fresh consignment of
pearls, amongst which were some very fine ones, and arrangements had
been made for me to interview several important dealers.I brought the pearls home one afternoon and put them into my
safe.Usually I locked the door of my room while I was transferring the
jewels from their hiding-places in my dress, but on this occasion by
chance I forgot to do so, and just at the moment that they lay on my
dressing table, while I was unlocking the safe, Kate, my parlour-maid,
opened the door abruptly without knocking."I beg your pardon, ma'am," she said, "I thought you were still
out; I was going to shut your window.""It's all right, Kate," I answered carelessly, unwilling to betray
the vexation I really felt, and moving between her and the pearls.But she had seen them already, and lifting up her hands in
surprise, she said: "Oh what lovely pearls, ma'am, and what a lot of
them.""Yes; they are pretty," I said, "but they don't belong to me. I am
taking care of them for someone else. I hope they will not get lost during the
few days they are in my charge."I consoled myself after she had left the room by the reflection
that she was not likely to speak to anyone about them, and would
probably forget the subject all the sooner because I had not made it
of special importance, and as she was absolutely honest herself, there
was nothing else to fear.Two days had passed of the three that were to elapse before the
interview at which I hoped to arrange the sale of the pearls.On the evening of the third day I was engaged to dine out with some
great friends, and as I was to meet an artist whose latest success in
portraits was adorning the walls of the New Gallery, I decided that I
ought to go and see it that afternoon.I had spent a pleasant hour at the Gallery, and was moving away,
when some American acquaintances pounced on me and carried me off to
tea with them at the Cecil; so that it was late in the afternoon when
I got back. And I found that I had only just left myself time to
dress.I was startled to hear a loud sob from Kate as she opened the door
to me, and to see that she was in floods of tears."Oh, ma'am," she said, "we are so glad you have come back; we
didn't know what to do. Mother is dying, and Mary and me feel we must
go to her."She handed me a telegram containing the words: "Mother had
accident, cannot live through the night, both come at once.""This is dreadful," I said, "I am so sorry. You must go of
course.""But how can we leave you alone?" she answered."Oh, I must manage somehow," I said, "I could not think of keeping
either of you in such a case."They were naturally both eager to be off, and there was barely time
for them to catch their train, so that I was too much occupied in
giving them the money and directions for their journey, and
dispatching them in a hansom, to think of anything else until after
they had gone.Then a disagreeable recollection of the pearls, and the thought
that I should be quite alone in the flat that night, flashed across my
mind.But there was no possibility of getting any one in so late in the
day, even if I had been able to go and hunt somebody up, and I was due
at the Anstruthers' dinner in three-quarters of an hour.There was nothing for it but to dress and go, taking the latch-key
with me, and reassuring myself with the thought that no one could
possibly know I was suddenly bereft of both my servants, and that my
wisest plan was not to mention it at all. As I passed through the hall
on my way out, I saw the ill-fated telegram lying crumpled up on the
floor, and picking it up mechanically, smoothed it out and carried it
with me. Although I told myself, as I drove towards Eaton Square, that
there was nothing to worry about, and that in the morning it would be
possible, if the maids did not return, to find someone to take their
place, I still felt an indefinite sense of uneasiness. If only I had returned
home earlier that afternoon I should have had time to arrange
something.I glanced at the telegram to see when it had arrived, and noticed,
without at first taking it into my mind, that it had been sent off
from Paddington at four o'clock.I read it over more than once with a sort of puzzled feeling of
something being wrong, without knowing where or why.It seemed quite simple: the mother had met with an accident, and
the brother, had telegraphed for his sisters to come to her.But why Paddington, when they lived in Hampshire? I suddenly asked
myself. Why Paddington?How was it that the telegram, instead of being sent off from their
own village, had started from Paddington?I was still seeking a solution to this problem when I reached the
Anstruthers, and was obliged to dismiss the whole matter from my
mind.The artist, a Mr. Charles Seton, turned out to be a very charming
man, who spoke little of art, but talked well on all subjects, and in the
interest roused by his conversation I quite forgot the incident of the
telegram, and enjoyed myself very much.He had brought with him, at the special invitation of the hostess,
a splendid dog, the original of one of his own paintings. It was a
Russian boarhound, massive and ferocious-looking, but as gentle as a
kitten under his control, and he laughingly introduced it to all,
making it present a huge paw to each of us in turn."Serge is not accustomed to dinner parties," he said, "but he is
too well-bred to be shy. Give your paw to Mrs. Delamere, Serge."The dog did as he was told in a dignified manner, and then lay
gently down beside me, and put his head on my lap."Serge has adopted you as one of his personal friends," Mr. Seton
said; "that is a sign of his especial approval and protection."Mrs. Anstruther declared that she was jealous, and when we went
down to dinner, and Serge leisurely followed me and disposed himself under the
table at my feet, she tried to lure him away from me with bribes, but
unsuccessfully.After dinner he followed us up to the drawing-room, passing his
master with superb indifference, and stalking solemnly after me, much
to everyone's amusement."I wish I could take you home with me," I said. "I should feel so
nice and safe with such a companion."And then I told Mrs. Anstruther about the unavoidable exodus of my
maids, and my enforced loneliness that night."My dear," she said, "I wouldn't be you for the whole world. I
should not sleep a wink. Why don't you borrow Serge to take care of
you? I am sure his master would lend him."I laughingly repudiated the idea of being nervous, and negatived
the suggestion, but in her impetuous good-nature she continued to
insist upon it, and finally, when the gentlemen joined us, she told
Mr. Seton that she had arranged for Serge to spend a day or two with
his new friend. I became rather embarrassed at last, and declared that I
should be more afraid of Serge himself than of anything else, but this
quite offended his master, and I was obliged to retract it."I assure you, Mrs. Delamere," he said, "I have only to say to
Serge, 'This lady is in your charge; on guard,' and your safety is
guaranteed. He would neither harm you himself nor allow anyone else to
do so."Finally the dog himself settled it by walking out of the room after
me and following me down-stairs."Very well," I said, "You shall come. I will send you back
to-morrow."I felt a sort of relief that after all I should not be absolutely
alone in my flat that night--my nerves had not been quite so strong
since my first two adventures--and a dog is very much better than
nothing in the way of a companion.He seemed perfectly contented with the arrangement, and waited
quietly when we reached the door of my flat while I opened it with my
latch-key, exactly as though he had been accustomed to do so
always.We entered together, and I closed the door and turned into the
little room I called my boudoir, out of which on one side led my
bedroom, having another door into the passage, further on.Serge pricked his ears, and looked fixedly at the door between the
two rooms, which was slightly ajar, and involuntarily I laid my hand
on his collar, and stood still waiting for something--I did not know
what. There was dead silence for a moment, then a chink as of some
metal, a stealthy movement, and, the door opening towards us, showed a
man cautiously peering; through the aperture. He had a coarse, clumsy
face, with a smile of triumph on it, and in his hand he held a small
packet, rolled up in a torn newspaper. I knew my pearls were
there.I held the dog more firmly. The room was in semi-darkness, and I
was between him and the man, who, therefore, did not notice him.Before I had time to speak the man pointed a Derringer at me."Scream, and I fire," he said. "I don't want to hurt yer, but I've got to get
away. I didn't reckon on you coming home so soon."I released the dog."Fetch him, Serge," I said.The dog's onslaught was so rapid, that if the man had been one step
away from the half-opened door, he couldn't have saved himself.As it was, he dropped the package in his terror, and it fell just
where it prevented the door from shutting.Serge seized it with his great teeth, and whirled it away, and the
man pulled the door to and locked it. The dog tore and bit furiously
at the barrier thus interposed between them, and I dropped trembling
into a chair. What was I to do next?The man's voice, changed from its first brutal defiance, came now
in subdued accents of entreaty."If you call the dog off, I'll come out and go away quietly," he
said. "You needn't be hard on me; I haven't took nothing.""You are safe from the dog where you are," I replied, "and, since
you are armed, it would be impossible for me to let you out. Besides, how do
I know that you would take nothing with you?""You can count the stones," he said, "they're all in that
package."I picked it up and proceeded to do so. Yes, they were all there,
thank goodness.But what was I to do about the man?If I raised an alarm I should be obliged to give him in charge, and
to state that he had broken open my safe. This would lead, perhaps, to
a revelation about the pearls, and in accounting for their presence in
the safe my occupation would become known.This was exactly what I wished to avoid. At the same time, if I
called the dog away the man might open the door and fire straight at
me.I was afraid as it was that he might fire through the door and
succeed in wounding poor Serge. I thought it best to assume more
decision than I really felt."I am going to summon help from down-stairs," I said, "and I shall
leave the dog on guard. If you attempt to come out he will tear you to
pieces.""For God's sake, let me off!" he said; "it's my first job. I've
never tried it on before, and I never will again, s'help me. It was
your girls talking about the wonderful lot of pearls you'd got, that
put me on to it. I thought I'd step in while you was all out and make
off with them.""You sent the telegram then?" I said."Oh, yes," he answered; "they didn't mean no harm, but they got
talking to me about their mother and all that, and it seemed as if the
whole job was really for me. You see they thought I was a labouring
man come up from their part of the country to look for work. They
never said a word about the dog, though.""I suppose, but for the dog, you would have shot me?" I said.He did not answer, and we remained silent for several minutes.Serge was lying close to the door, with his head on his paws, and
his eyes fixed on the chink of light that came from under it.Presently he gave a low growl, and, getting up, sniffed all along
the chink, and then stopped listening. I wondered what the man was
trying to do, and whether he would still manage to outwit me in
getting away.I wished that, after all, I had given the alarm at once.In spite of Serge's presence I began to feel frightened. Suddenly,
with a snarl of rage and a terrific bound, he sprang past me through
the door leading to the hall; there was a crash, a strangled oath, and
then a horrible sound, the sound of an animal and a human being in
deadly conflict.I rushed out. The man was lying on the floor with his head and
shoulders jammed into an angle of the wall; one arm wedged underneath
him by the weight of the dog, who was straining every effort to reach
his throat with its huge jaws, while he vainly strove with his hand
wound into its collar to choke it off.His face was covered with blood, and purple with the agony of his
effort.I thought he would be killed, torn to pieces before my
eyes."Serge," I cried, "Serge, come away; down, good dog, down."I seized his collar, and pulled him back. He never attempted to
bite me, but continued snarling and showing his teeth at his
enemy.I was only just in time. The wretched man was quite spent, and lay
still with closed eyes.I picked up the Derringer which had fallen in the struggle; it was
unloaded, a rusty, useless thing. I suppose he had hoped to frighten
me with it, and indeed he would have succeeded but for Serge.I felt dizzy and faint myself with the sight of that ghastly
struggle.The man had got out of the bedroom by the door leading into the
passage, and stealing round, had hoped to get through the hall door
before the dog caught him.I fetched him some brandy and water, and a wet sponge for his face,
and the dog watched him all the time, not letting him stir a yard.Then I ordered Serge to keep still, and, leading the man to the
door myself, put him out.He began muttering some thanks and protestations, but I cut him
short."You had better get away as quickly and quietly as you can," I
said. "If the porter catches you at the door, he will be sure to ask
for your business, and make it unpleasant for you."He slouched away down the staircase, dazed and crestfallen, and
presently the sound of the hall-door closing quietly, assured me that
he had managed to escape unseen.When I sent Serge back to his master the next day, I felt basely
ungrateful in not mentioning the good service he had done for me; but
I thought it best to tell no one on account of the risk it would add
to my business if it became generally known.Since then, I am glad to say, circumstances have enabled me to tell
the whole story of that night, and to thank Mr. Seton more fully for
the loan, which was such a fortunate one for me, of his dog.He insisted on making me a present of Serge, which he said was the
most fitting reward for the dog's gallantry, and I feel that as long as Serge
lives I shall never need to fear a burglary again.My maids, on finding out that they had been hoaxed, for what reason
they never knew, were anxious to return to me at once, but I thought
it safer to get two new ones. Honesty is a very good quality as far as
it goes, but a little discretion is a necessary adjunct to most
virtues, I fancy, and, but for the lucky chance of Serge's advent, I
should have suffered an irreparable loss, in consequence of their
careless loquacity.CHAPTER VI.I was beginning to get over the phase of nervous inaction which
resulted from my unpleasant interview with the burglar, and to feel
that I was once more mentally and physically ready for work, when
Mr. Leighton wrote for me to come to the office, and told me that he
was anxious to send a consignment of pearls on approval to a large
firm in Bristol, and that, if I liked to undertake the business, he
would be pleased to place it in my hands. He did not apprehend any
danger, since it was not even remotely probable that anyone would know
either of my journey or its object; and he should like me to he his
emissary, because these would be his first dealings with the firm, and
to establish a friendly footing between them was very desirable from a
business point of view.I gladly undertook the commission, and made preparations for my
journey without any misgivings.I had never been to Bristol, though I had often received
invitations to pay it a visit from relations of my mother who lived
there, and I decided that, now fate had brought me the opportunity, I
would take full advantage of it, and, my business once finished, and
the pearls safely transferred from my keeping, would roam about for a
time and give myself a holiday.I was in such high spirits all the day before that fixed for my
departure, that some friends who were calling on me rallied me on my
cheerfulness, and one of them, as she said good-bye, laughingly asked
me if I had just had a fortune left me."I have never seen you so gay, Mrs. Delamere," she said, "what is
the reason of it? Do tell me.""There is no special reason," I answered; "I am going out of town
to-morrow, and am rather looking forward to it. I don't know that I
have any other cause for rejoicing."She looked at me attentively. She was a Scotch girl, a Miss
Burnley, and very superstitious. "Then you are 'fey,'" she said,
"that's what it is, and something is going to happen to you.""What sort of something?" I asked; "and why do you think so?""I know it," she said; "when a person is unreasonably happy and
excited, the Scotch call them 'fey,' and say it means coming
danger. Have you had any unusual experience lately--during the last
twenty-four hours, say?"I pretended to reflect. She was quite in earnest, and I am not
superstitious."The only one I can remember is that a man stared at me very rudely
yesterday," I said at last, "and wrote something down in a book about
me; at least it seemed to me as if he did so."She looked quite startled."If you see that man again," she entreated, "avoid him! No matter
how difficult it may be, go away from him. He is your evil
genius.""Good gracious!" I said, "how alarming. Do you know, I believe he
was only a surveyor taking measurements.""Never mind," she replied, as she went away, "don't let him come
near you if you can help it. He means danger."I was a great deal too busy to think of her warning again, and too
intent on so disposing of the pearls in various much-concealed pockets
in my attire that they should be safe. I carried a handbag with
me--one of the ordinary dressing-cases of travel--but I never placed
anything very valuable in it, reserving it for small accessories of
comfort.I had sent it to Mappin's for a little necessary repair, and had
fetched it away during my drive that day, on the occasion when the
trifling incident of which I spoke to Miss Burnley had occurred.The man, a respectable-looking loafer, had sauntered past my
carriage twice, and had stared in rather a marked manner; finally,
after jotting down something in a note-book, had lounged away.I was going by the morning train to Bristol, which meant an early
start, and I had intended to be in good time, and to choose my
carriage carefully, but various small obstacles cropped up, and made
me so late that I only reached the platform at the moment of the
train's departure.The guard hurried me on, and opening the door of a first-class
carriage, signed impatiently for me to enter.I saw that it was empty, and gave a hesitating glance to the window
of the next carriage.A man and a woman were sitting opposite to each other; the woman
was facing me, and even in my momentary glimpse I saw that she was
young, fair, well-dressed; the man had his back towards me, and I
caught only his profile.But that was enough. It recalled, with a flash of memory that
included Miss Burnley's warning, "he means danger," the face of the
man who had stared at me.Instinctively I turned and entered the empty carriage.I had intended to find a compartment with three or four
fellow-travellers; the train was an express, and went right through to
Bristol; therefore, if I started well there was nothing to fear.But after all, to be alone was safer than travelling with only one
other person.I wondered idly whether the resemblance between the man in the
carriage beyond, and the impertinent loafer, was a real one or only
fancied, concluded that in any case it could not matter, and gave
myself over wholly to the charms of a new novel.We were nearing the end of our journey, and had just entered the
Box Tunnel, when I was startled back from romance to reality by a
short, sharp scream, apparently strangled in the very middle of its
utterance, coming from the next carriage, followed by a thud against
the partition behind me.I sprang to my feet and listened intently; the beating of my heart
quickened with sudden unrealised terror.No sound for an instant, then another cry, a low sobbing one,
ending in a horrible choking gasp.I flew to the alarm and pressed it, while all sorts of vague
thoughts rushed through my brain. What was happening to the woman next
door?--for it was a woman's voice. Was she being murdered? Was the man
a thief--an escaped lunatic? Miss Burnley's warning, "he means
danger," ran like a dark thread in and out of my brain.We were nearly through the tunnel; the train, which had slackened
speed half way before I sounded the alarm, was now slowing
down. Glimpses of daylight came from the opening ahead of us.I leant out of my window, debating whether I should open the door
and step along to the next or not, and as the thought occurred to me I
saw the guard swiftly emerge from his van and come towards me.Then the door of the next carriage opened, and a white, furtive
face looked for an instant into mine, while the man swung himself down, and fled
through the tunnel into the darkness which we had just left.I tried to scream, but my voice would not sound right.The guard, however, saw the man descend and run, and, springing
down, followed him, shouting out to the guard at the other end.By this time every window was alive with eager curious faces, and
voices clamouring to know the reason of our sudden stop. I stepped out
on the footboard, and into the next carriage.Horror! a woman was lying on the floor, her distorted purple face
bruised and bleeding, her eyes staring upwards in mute and desperate
appeal.The lace ruffle round her neck, at which one of her hands were
clutching convulsively, had been twisted and strained with such force,
that it looked like a narrow ragged string on either side of which the
flesh rose in two dark ridges.I thought she was dead, but I threw myself down on my knees, and
cutting the edge of the ruffle with my pocket-knife, was able to get a
finger under it, and to untwist it.By this time one of the guards was with me, and we lifted the poor
thing on to the seat, and supporting her head, I gently wiped the
swollen lips, round which a foam had gathered, and stooping, held my
ear against her heart.It seemed to me that a slow, heavy beat was faintly perceptible,
and when the next moment someone came with a flask of brandy, I forced
the discoloured lips and clenched teeth apart, and poured some down
her throat.There was a quiver of the eyelids, they closed, a tremor ran
through her whole frame, and a sobbing sigh came, as she swallowed the
brandy."I am a doctor; will you allow me?" said a man entering.We made way for him gladly, and, during the half-hour that passed
before we ran into Bristol Station, he and I, under his directions,
gradually restored the sufferer to consciousness."You are alighting here?" he said interrogatively, as we began to
stop."Yes," I said."I should advise your taking her at once to the nearest friend's
house," he continued in a low voice, "or a hotel; she should be kept perfectly
quiet. She is your sister, I suppose."I gave an astonished negative."She is no relation; I do not even know her."He looked mystified."But," he said, "I thought, of course, she was with you and she is
so like you."I looked at the face, the poor disfigured face it certainly, except
for the accidental alteration of it, might have been very like
mine.She was, too, evidently about the same height, and was dressed in
black with touches of white as I was.I began to tell him hurriedly the circumstances of the case, and
then the train stopped, and we were surrounded at once by officials,
with the stationmaster at their head.I related exactly what had happened, and my story of the man who
descended from the train and escaped through the tunnel was
corroborated by the guard.The man who had succeeded in escaping, he said, must have dived
between the carriages to the other side of the train and got out of the tunnel
on the further side; the train had to proceed, and they had wasted
several minutes as it was trying to catch him.The poor woman was, after the attack, far too weak and ill to
answer any questions; she glanced about as if in search of something,
and on the guard producing a handbag which he found in the tunnel, and
which must have been dropped by her assailant in his flight, she made
a feeble sign of direction for us to open it.We found a card-case inside, which revealed her name and address,
and she was carried to a fly, and driven to Grove Villa, Clifton,
accompanied by a detective, the doctor, and myself.It appeared that she was the wife of a lawyer, Westall by name, and
that she had been paying a visit to her own people in town and was on
her way home.Her husband, for whom we sent at once to his office, was absolutely
at a loss to account for the murderous attack on his wife, and
could only
suggest that the man must have been mad.For three days Mrs. Westall was so ill that it was hopeless to
attempt to find out anything from her; and, indeed, the doctors were
afraid that she would succumb to the nervous shock; but she pulled
through, to my great joy. For not only was I deeply interested in her
recovery from ordinary feelings of compassion and kindliness, but I
had a vague indescribable feeling of participation in this mysterious
crime as though I were in some way, unknown to myself, involved in its
guilt.The face of the man in the tunnel haunted me. It was most certainly
the same as that of the loafer who had stared at me.I felt sure that in some inexplicable fashion I was mixed up with
his attempt on Mrs. Westall's life.At last she rallied sufficiently for the doctors to sanction a
legal interview with her, the result of which I learnt as soon as
possible.It appeared that when she first got into the train at Paddington,
there was another lady in it, but that a minute or two before starting a man
passed up and down in front of the carriage, and apparently stared
rudely at this lady, who, on his preparing to enter, murmured an
expression of annoyance, and got out, changing to another carriage
higher up.Mrs. Westall, a little startled, thought of following; but seeing
that the man appeared harmless, and at once engrossed himself in a
newspaper, decided not to. He was perfectly nice on the way down;
spoke to her once or twice with reference to the window, and other
trivialities, and she felt no alarm at all.On entering the Box Tunnel, however, he suddenly got up, and was
about to lift down her bag, which was in the rack above her, when she
stopped him."Excuse me, that is mine," she said."It's going to be mine, now," he said. "I know what you have got in
it, well enough, and you will have to do without this little lot of
pearls."He pushed her aside and made for the door. But knowing that all her
money, her ticket, and a few jewels were in the bag, she would not take
its loss so calmly.She grappled with him, and succeeded in wresting the bag from his
grasp and throwing it behind her.He tried to reach it, but failing to do so, threw her down, and
told her he would "do" for her, and have the bag all the same.She struggled desperately for a moment, and then he got his hand
into the ruffle at her neck, and twisted it until she lost
consciousness.She remembered nothing more till her restoration."Either he was a madman," she said, in her deposition, "or he must
have taken me for someone else."Alas! poor thing; I saw only too plainly that she had been mistaken
for someone else, and in my horror at this confirmation of my
undefined dread, I nearly betrayed myself.But I felt that it would be unwise and a mistake, both for my own
sake and my employer's, that this should be known publicly, and as
soon as I had finished my commission at Bristol, sold the pearls, and ascertained
that Mrs. Westall's recovery though slow was sure, I hurried back to
town and told Mr. Leighton the whole story.He commended my discretion.Since the man had escaped, and was still in ignorance as to his own
mistake, there was no object to be gained in our explaining it to the
public.From my description of him, Mr. Leighton felt quite sure that he
was a discharged employé of his, who had doubtless been lurking
about the office, had guessed my business there, and, possibly,
overheard my arrangements with Mr. Leighton.He had recognised me when I was waiting at Mappin's for my bag, had
concluded that I intended to convey the pearls in it, and, jotting
down a few notes as to my dress and general appearance, had laid his
plan to rob me on the way down.Mrs. Westall's unfortunate--for her--chance resemblance to me in
all these details, and choice of the same train, coupled with my
own very late
arrival at Paddington, had misled him, and had ended in her being my
involuntary substitute."He must certainly have thought I was someone else," she said
constantly, "because he spoke more than once of 'the pearls.' 'I'll
have those pearls,' were the last words I heard him say, 'if I swing
for it'--or else he was quite mad."But both Mr. Leighton and I feel convinced that there was method in
his madness, and that I was saved marvellously from a struggle, which
might possibly in my case have ended fatally.Indeed it must have done so in hers, had I not sounded the alarm,
and so interrupted the murderer, and saved her life.I am most inexpressibly thankful that it turned out so; for I could
never have forgiven myself otherwise.It is one thing to risk one's own life, when one's living depends
on it, but quite another thing to involve others, however
accidentally, in danger.Mr. Leighton was inclined, for my own safety, to give me my
dismissal; but I persauded him at last to reconsider it, and promised
to be very careful, and to have no more adventures if
possible.CHAPTER VII.IT was many weeks after my narrow escape on the journey to Bristol
before Mr. Leighton would hear of my undertaking any large or
difficult commission for him."You are too confident, Mrs. Delamere," he said gravely, when I
urged him to give me some work worth doing, "too reckless. Certainly
you manage to escape scathless from danger in the most wonderful
manner, but you know in all cases of risk it is only a question of
time. Sooner or later I am afraid something bad will happen to you,
and then how should I forgive myself?""Nonsense, Mr. Leighton," I said, "you are over-cautious and
over-sensitive. You are giving me, at my earnest desire, the
opportunity to earn a comfortable living in a congenial way. If you
take it from me, then I must become a governess, or a companion, or a
typist, or
something equally arduous, and for an income that will only just
clothe me. Surely you have nothing to blame yourself for, whatever
happens.""Well," he answered, "a woman, and especially a wilful one,
generally manages to get her own way. Since you insist,
Mrs. Delamere"--he handed me a letter that had been lying on his
desk.It was a very ordinary letter, and worded in a terse business-like
manner that did not suggest any possible romance. The writer said
that, having heard of Mr. Leighton's reputation as a pearl merchant,
and being anxious to match exactly two pearl earrings, he would be
obliged if some trustworthy and intelligent person could be sent to
see him, and to take his order. He named a day and hour.The letter was signed, Arnold Gervoise, and addressed from
St. Bernard's Mansions, some new flats in Mayfair.I folded the note up and put it in my card-case; then rose, and
holding out my hand to Mr. Leighton, said: "Good-bye. I will be at St. Bernard's
Mansions punctually at ten on Thursday."Mr. Leighton smiled."No hesitations?" he said; "no suspicions, Mrs. Delamere? How do
you know this is not a fresh plot against you personally?""I am convinced it is not," I answered; "and, anyhow, I'm going,
Mr. Leighton." And I left the office before he could raise any fresh
objections.Thursday came, and at ten o'clock I found myself in a charming
room, half dressing-room, half boudoir, awaiting the pleasure of
Mr. Arnold Gervoise.Presently the door opened, and a wheel-chair, propelled by its
owner, appeared.He piloted himself in skilfully, shut the door, and then came quite
close to me, saying apologetically:"I am extremely sorry to have kept you waiting; I had no idea
Mr. Leighton's representative was a lady, but in any case it was
unavoidable. I hope you will excuse me.""Certainly," I said; "it does not matter at all; I am not in any
hurry. Mr. Leighton entrusted this business to me because I have done
a good deal of work for him before."He looked at me with increased scrutiny and, while feigning to
glance in another direction, I returned his criticising glances in a
mirror that reflected him.He was young and handsome, though with a weary, worried look about
him that told of some mental strain in addition to his physical
incapacity."I am a wretched cripple, as you see," he broke out impatiently,
"and therefore dependent on others for the management of my affairs to
a great extent; but I wish to keep this matter entirely between
ourselves. I trust that I may count on you not to mention it to any of
my household?"I bowed."I shall certainly not do so," I said.He looked at me questioningly for an instant, and then wheeled
himself to the door and disappeared.When he came back he had a small velvet case in his hand."I want you to take the exact design of these," he said, showing me
a pair of magnificent earrings. "You can make a drawing of them if you
like, only you must be very quick. And I want you to bring me a pair
that will match these exactly in three days."I obeyed his first directions in silence. When I had finished a
rapid sketch, I observed:"These will be very expensive, and I cannot promise them faithfully
in three days, though we will do our best. The black pearls will be
the difficulty."The earrings were two splendid diamonds set in a circle of large
white pearls, and each depending from a single black pearl.The setting was peculiar and old-fashioned. He seized the case from
me, and hurried once more out of the room.When he returned he seemed more tranquil and relieved."I am greatly obliged to you," he said, "and I shall be still more
so if you can accomplish the copies successfully within the three
days."I assured him that Mr. Leighton would do his best, and took my
leave, not without some wondering questions in my mind as to the
meaning of all that had happened.I had reached the public staircase, and was waiting for the lift,
when it ascended, and a very beautiful woman alighting from it gave me
a glance of curiosity, and passed on to the flat I had just left. She
was exquisitely dressed, tall and graceful, and, before the lift
descended with me, I had time to see that, on the opening of the front
door, she walked straight in without inquiry. She was, I felt sure,
the wife of the man who had given me the order for the pearls.I fulfilled Mr. Gervoise's commission by dint of much perseverance
and trouble, and managed to get the earrings completed within
half-an-hour of the time he had appointed for my arrival at the flat
with them.I hoped that this slight difference of time would not matter, and
when I was shown into the same room as before, I expected that Mr. Gervoise
would make his appearance at once, and that the whole affair would be
speedily settled.But one quarter of an hour passed, and another, and yet another,
and still I was sitting alone with no sign, either visible or
otherwise, from Mr. Gervoise.I began to feel very uncomfortable.Had he not laid such stress on my secrecy, I should have rung the
bell and sent a message to him; as it was I did not know what to
do. But my patience was very nearly exhausted, and I decided at last
that I would stay only five minutes longer, and would then quietly
take my departure, and wait for further instructions through
Mr. Leighton.The time had almost expired when the door suddenly opened, and
there swept into the room the same woman I had seen in the lift.I was struck anew with her extraordinary beauty, and with a
strange, startled expression in one of the loveliest pairs of eyes
that I have ever seen.She stopped dead on seeing me, and Mr. Gervoise, who was wheeling
himself rapidly after her, stopped also, and made me a signal that
seemed to be of entreaty." What do you want?" she said quickly and imperiously; "are you
waiting to see me? I was not told that anyone was here."I had already risen, and I answered quietly, though I felt I was in
a awkward dilemma: "Perhaps there is some mistake. I fancied that this
was the flat to which I was sent for on business, but--"I concluded by answering Mr. Gervoise's look of appeal with one
commanding him to speak."Of course," he said, "it is someone for our predecessor again,
Vera. We have only just taken this flat," he continued, to me,
"perhaps it was Mr. Thurston you wanted." This time his look was one
of the most agonised entreaty.I bowed, and walked towards the door."I am sorry," I said, "that there has been a mistake. I did not
know that Mr. Thurston had let his flat to you."And, having reached the passage, I fled to the door and let myself
out without further delay, mentally resolving never to enter it
again.I had no desire to be mixed up in Mr. Gervoise's mysteries, and I
felt that I had been very unfairly treated, and was well out of an
uncomfortable situation.But the next day came a letter, addressed to Mr. Leighton, to be
handed to me, in which Mr. Gervoise apologised for having given me a
fruitless errand, and said that he would fully explain everything if I
would call at six o'clock on the following afternoon, and that he must
beg that I would not transfer the matter to other hands, but would
come myself.I confess that my curiosity to learn the secret of all this mystery
greatly helped his persuasions, and I found myself quite unable to
resist going, in spite of my former resolves.At six o'clock therefore I found myself again in the little room,
and in the presence of Mr. Arnold Gervoise."Look here, Mrs. Delamere," he said, "I am going to make a clean
breast of it to you. You must think it all very queer and suspicious, and
I am anxious to avoid suspicion. If you will consent to keep my
confidence, I should prefer to confide in you. I am sure I can trust
you."I told him that I thought it would be best for him not to confide
any secret he might have to a total stranger like myself, and that if
he would kindly settle for the pearls I could take my leave, and the
matter would be ended.But he was, as I could see, an impressionable and excitable person,
and this did not suit him."Here is the cheque," he said, handing me an envelope. "But I must
ask you to listen to me, and to hear my explanation of what cannot but
seem to you my unusual conduct."It is like this. I have a wife to whom I am passionately
devoted. She was penniless, and she married me for a home, not for
love. I am determined to win her in time, though, and I will let
nothing stand in the way of it. A few months ago I had an accident out
hunting, and was disabled for a time; I shall get over it presently. Some
friends of mine lent me their country house to rest in and get
convalescent."My wife went there with me. Our hostess has some fine jewels, and
one evening she showed them to my wife, and told her the value of a
particular pair of earrings. Soon after, she and her husband went away
to Monte Carlo, leaving us in their house, which they offered for our
use while they were away. One night"--he bent forward, and his voice
sank to a whisper with repressed agitation--"I saw my wife get up, and
go out of our room. I watched for her return, and when she came back
she had these earrings in her hand. She put them into a secret
compartment of her dressing-case and locked them up. The next day I
asked her if she knew where our hostess kept her jewels, and whether
she had taken them abroad with her. My wife told me that she knew
where they were kept usually  that, in fact, she had been told the
word which would open the lock of the American safety-lock, to open
which you must set the correct password, but she added that she had forgotten
the word and also that she believed our hostess had taken all her
jewels with her. Then I knew that she was a thief; that my wife, the
woman whom I worshipped, had stolen the earrings deliberately. I tried
every plan to lead her to confess, but she wouldn't."Finally, hearing that our hostess was on her way home, I came up
here and determined to match the earrings; to place the new ones in
the secret drawer of my wife's dressing-case, and to get the original
ones conveyed in some way to their rightful owner. As you have helped
me in the first part of my scheme, will you help me with the second?
Will you try to think of a plan to get the jewels back without rousing
their owner's suspicions against my wife?"Amazing as this story was, there was no doubt about its truth, and
that Mr. Gervoise was thoroughly in earnest in his resolution to hide
his wife's crime, and yet to atone for it."Give me the earrings now," he said, "and I will put them in the
dressing-case, and hand the others to you, if meanwhile you have thought of
any way to return them. My wife is out, and this may be our only
opportunity."He took the case, looked at the earrings, and admired the exactness
of every tiny detail to the pattern ones, and was wheeling himself
towards the door when it was flung open, and Mrs. Gervoise came in,
carrying a small silver lamp."Oh, you are here, Arnold," she exclaimed, "and in the dusk
too. What are you--" she caught sight of me and stood still, the lamp
in one hand and the other resting on her husband's shoulder."Who is this lady?" she said. "Was she not here the night before
last?"He did not answer, and she stamped her foot with annoyance.I felt exceedingly annoyed myself, but there was no escape.Then she saw the case in his hand."What is that?" she demanded. "I insist on seeing."She snatched it from him, and gave a cry of astonishment or alarm--I could
not quite tell which."What is the meaning of this?" she said. "Mrs. Hamilton's earrings'
here! What are you doing with them? Good Heavens, Arnold, you are
not--" she faltered--and then burst out again--"how did you get
them?--speak--tell me at once, or I shall think you are a thief."He caught her hand."You know I am not," he said; "I want to replace those that have
been stolen.""Stolen!" she echoed. "Are you mad, Arnold? If they are stolen, you
must have taken them yourself."They had both of them forgotten me completely, so absorbed were
they in their own impetuous feelings."Oh, Vera, Vera," he said, "why won't you acknowledge that you
stole them? I would forgive you, darling--I have forgiven you
already--if you would only--" He caught her hand, but she wrenched it
free. Her eyes were blazing with anger, and she could hardly speak for
rage and agitation."How dare you say that to me?" she stammered; "to accuse me--" she
choked with passion. He clasped her hand again, and was going to
speak, when, freeing herself with a violent gesture, she dropped the
lamp which she had been holding, and in an instant, with the crash of
splintering glass, a liquid stream of fire began to spread itself like
lightning over the carpet.I had involuntarily sprung forward as she dropped it, and the swift
flame caught the edge of my dress, which, being of light material,
blazed up at once.In my panic I was going to lose my head and rush from the room, but
Mrs. Gervoise caught me, threw me down and rolled me in an Indian rug,
extinguishing the flames.Meanwhile the servants, in answer to her screams, had come and
managed to put out the fire.Then I fainted, and when I came to myself I was in bed in the
Gervoises' spare room, and my scorched ankles had been bound up with
some soothing ointment.For some days I was too ill to be moved, and both the Gervoises
were kindness itself to me, though I could see that they were not on
friendly terms with each other.At last, when I had been carried to the sofa in the boudoir,
Mr. Gervoise offered to read to me, and as soon as we were alone told
me all that had been happening."My wife is furious with me," he said. "She declares I stole the
earrings myself, and invented the whole story in order to get power
over her. She insisted on sending the original ones back anonymously
to their owner, and she will not speak to me on the subject again. I
can see she hates me. What am I to do?""It is very singular," I mused. "A theory has occurred to me,
Mr. Gervoise. I wonder if you would be willing to make an
experiment.""Anything you like," he answered, "provided she forgives me."It was a very simple little plot, and before I left them we carried
it out, and I proved that my surmise was a correct one.Mrs. Gervoise was, unknown to her husband and even to herself, a
somnambulist, and was in the habit, if anything had interested or
excited her brain, of walking in her sleep, and doing things of which
she had no remembrance afterwards.She had slept in the room with me the first two nights after the
fire, because I was feverish from the shock and the pain of my burns;
and it was her walking about and talking in her sleep that gave me the
possible solution to her husband's mysterious story about the
earrings. She was quite unaware that she had gone to her friend's
jewel-case, made use of her knowledge of the pass-word, and, taking
out the earrings, had hidden them away. When the truth came out, she
was touched with her husband's goodness to her, in spite of his
knowledge of her theft, and I think she learnt to care for him more as
a result of this experience than she ever would have done
otherwise.At all events, when I parted from them, they were the best of
friends, and she had graciously accepted the gift of the second pair
of earrings
from Mr. Gervoise. I was lame for some time afterwards, but otherwise
there was no ill result from what might have been a serious, if not
fatal, accident to all three of us.CHAPTER VIII."ARE you sure that you have recovered from your last unlucky
experience?" said Mr. Leighton doubtfully to me, when I presented
myself at his office and asked for some work."Quite sure," I answered; "and, indeed, though it is not pleasant
to be scorched, I cannot call my last adventure an unlucky one, since
it has been the means of bringing happiness to two people, and setting
right a very grave mistake. I have been idle some time now,
Mr. Leighton, and you must really let me return to business. Is there
any special thing on hand that I can assist you in?""Well," he said, "I have been asked to supply some curious
specimens of pearls to an old gentleman who is interested in them. I
fancy he is a man of many hobbies, and that his latest is the
acquisition of quaint, unset gems. He does not insist on their beauty
or great
value, provided that they are uncommon.""And have you found any for him?" I asked."Here are one or two he might possibly fancy," replied
Mr. Leighton, unlocking a drawer and handing me a case.The pearls inside, seven in number, were, I could see at once, not
very good, but were all of singular shapes; one exactly resembling a
tortoise, another a beetle, and a third a human heart. This last was
set as a pin, and was transfixed by a diamond dagger, tipped with
rubies."I could send these by post," said Mr. Leighton, "but, if you like
to take them to him on approval, it is possible you may arrange some
further dealings with him. He lives a little way out of town, just
beyond Brentham, and I hear is a bachelor, well off, and leading the
life of a recluse, always engrossed in some new fad. Here are the name
and address," he said, handing me a card, on which I read:MR. PHILIP MAGNUS,The Gables, nr. Brentham."I think I may as well go," I said, "if you have nothing else for
me to do just now. It may lead to something further.""Yes," he assented, "only I do trust, Mrs. Delamere, that the
something further may not be any new and startling adventure for
you. Pray, be careful, and if Mr. Philip Magnus does not seem a
desirable client from a personal point of view, have nothing to do
with him, and bring the pearls back."I promised to be very cautious, and, having arranged an appointment
by letter with Mr. Magnus, I found my way to The Gables, taking the
train to Brentham, and driving from the station in a fly.The house was a mile or two out, and stood quite by itself in a
large garden at the end of a straggling bit of common."You can wait for me," I said to the cabman, as we drew up at the
outside gate, beyond which only a footpath was discernible, winding
away through close shrubs."Sorry I can't do that, my lady," was the reply, "I'm engaged to
meet a party coming down by the next train. I could come back for you in
an hour or two."I told him with vexation that that would not do at all, and that he
ought to have mentioned his engagement before we started. The only
thing now was for him to send me another fly as soon as he reached the
station; this he promised to do, and drove off.It was with a certain amount of reluctance that I wended my way up
the path, and arriving at the house, which was quite hidden from the
road by trees, rang a very rusty, unused-looking bell that hung at the
side of the door.The sound of my departing fly wheels had already died away, and I
seemed suddenly cut off from the outer world, and felt a sympathetic
resemblance to Mariana of the Moated Grange stealing over me.The door had glass panels, but they were so encrusted with dirt as
to be opaque, and gave me an impression of discomfort and isolation
that was not encouraging."I am on the right side of the door now," I reflected. "I wonder if
I had better remain there, and give up the attempt to penetrate into
Mr. Philip Magnus' privacy."But I allowed myself one moment's hesitation, and in that moment I
was lost, for the door opened, and a middle-aged woman of stern
demeanour, but immaculate tidiness, stood surveying me."What may you be pleased to want?" she asked frigidly.Evidently I did not find favour in her sight. "I have an
appointment with Mr. Magnus," I said; "can I see him?""I think there's some mistake," she replied, "Mr. Magnus never
receives visitors. He is expecting someone now on business.""Yes, that is quite right," I said, "I have come on business,"
adding, as she still barred the doorway, "from Mr. Leighton.""Oh," she said, reluctantly moving aside, "then I suppose you must
come in. I understood it was a gentleman Mr. Magnus expected."She looked curiously at me, as though questions were hovering on
her lips, but I declined further parley, and, stepping in gave her my
card. She went away with it and during the moments that followed I was
struck anew by the loneliness and silence of the place.Returning, she signed to me to follow her up-stairs, which I was
proceeding to do when she stopped half-way, and said suddenly:
"Mr. Magnus is rather a strange gentleman. It's years since he has
seen any woman to speak to except me. I'm used to his ways, but a
stranger might not understand them. He means no harm, only he's
queer.""Oh, I dare say it will be all right," I said with a cheerfulness
that I confess was assumed.She still eyed me doubtfully."He had a trouble some years ago, to do with a lady," she said; "he
lost someone he was fond of. As long as you don't remind him of her it
won't matter though.""I shall certainly not do so," I remarked. "But if you think
Mr. Magnus is likely to be upset at seeing me, perhaps I had better
not go up.""I'm afraid it would disappoint him now," she said. "He's been
looking forward to having some new toys for his collection. Only I
thought I would warn you that he's queer."And with this reassuring speech she led the way to a room on the
first floor, and announced me.As I passed her in the doorway she pointed to another room
opposite, and said in a low voice:"I shall be in there."Then I found myself confronting Mr. Philip Magnus.He was a benevolent, rather nice-looking elderly man, clad in a
flowered dressing gown, that trailed on the ground, with a skull-cap
on his head; and he was sitting in pleased contemplation of a table
laden with cases of all shapes and sizes, some open, some shut, all
containing apparently the treasures he had been collecting. The walls
were hung with odds-and-ends of every conceivable description and
nationality, and the tables and cabinets and even the chairs were
covered with bric àbrac, some
portions carefully assorted and labelled; others mingled together
anyhow as though their owner's interest had suddenly failed.The chair in which Mr. Magnus sat was in an angle of the wall, and
he seemed to be almost blocked in by the huge table in front of him. I
noticed that on the wall close to him hung the pulley of a lock; one
of those old-fashioned locks which consist of a brass bolt suspended
from a cord, and a socket fastened on to the door of the room. The
suspending cord ran round the edge of the ceiling to Mr. Magnus'
favourite corner, and then dropped within reach of his hand; so that
he could lock or unlock the door of the room without moving.He rose and bowed, looking at me in a stealthy way from under his
eyelids that I did not much appreciate; then edged himself out of the
recess and came towards me.I handed to him the case of pearls with a few brief words of
explanation.I noticed that in taking them from me his hands shook perceptibly,
and he gave me another quick stealthy glance.He walked, without replying, to the table, and opening the case,
began talking to himself."So like," I could hear him muttering, "so very like. But why does
she come with the pearls? Does she want to gain forgiveness through
the pearls?"I felt a little uneasy, and wondered whether the housekeeper was
within reach of the sound of my voice.He was still standing with his back to me, and I could see that he
was holding the heart-shaped pearl and examining it intently.I told him in the most matter-of-fact tone I could assume that I
did not recommend the pin as a jewel, merely as a curio; but that, if
he preferred to have valuable pearls for his collection, Mr. Leighton
would be pleased to procure them.He listened attentively, and said, without turning round."What is the history of this one?""I don't know;" I answered. "Possibly it may have one, but it has
not been told to me."He looked at all the other pearls in turn, then went back to the
heart, and again he began murmuring to himself."A heart," he said; "mine--pierced with a dagger--a dagger tipped
with blood. Treachery was the dagger she used--black treachery. I
swore I would kill her for it."Then he wheeled round suddenly."What have you come back for?" he said more loudly.I rose to my feet, and looked him straight in the face."I don't understand you, Mr. Magnus," I said. "I think you are
mistaking me for someone else.""No," he said, "there is no mistake this time. I was sure you would
come back some day, and I knew you as soon as you came in."He took a step towards me, and though I was still not greatly
alarmed, believing that he was a harmless lunatic who wanted
humouring and
controlling, I thought it might be wise to retreat.I therefore backed away from him towards the door, but with a
movement as rapid as it was unexpected, he turned, ran round the table
into the corner, and released the pulley.Instantly the lock fell into the socket on the door, and I was a
prisoner.Even if I could have reached the door I was powerless to get out,
for the lock was high up on the top panel beyond my reach. But yet I
did not feel at all overcome with fright. The housekeeper was within
call; surely no great harm could happen to me.Nevertheless, the face that was now looking at me was very
different from the one I had seen on entering. Then it had worn a
bland smile and was almost childlike in its expression; now it looked
mad, and there was a cunning leer in eye and mouth that foreboded
evil."I must ask you to unlock the door, Mr. Magnus. I have other
appointments to keep. I can come back another day when you have decided about the
jewels," I said very quietly and distinctly.He began feeling about with one hand amongst the cases on the
table, in a strange, covert manner, while with the other he pointed
towards me."No, you don't go," he said, "you will stay here now, with
me--always with me. It was foolish of you to come back--I warned you
not to--you stabbed my heart with a dagger; you killed me with
poisoned words and false kisses, and then you laughed. Yes, you
laughed when my heart was bleeding; you didn't care--and you went away
on his arm, and I vowed if I ever saw you again I would kill you--I'm
going to kill you now; I'm going to pierce your heart, as you pierced
mine, and laugh as you laughed at me."He had found what he was searching for on the table; a long, narrow
case, and when he pressed the spring I saw that inside lay a
stiletto.And I realised all at once, with a flash of sickening terror, that
whatever he had been up to the moment I came, he was a raving madman now,
and that I was alone in the room with him, with a locked door between
me and any possible help.He had taken the stiletto from its case, and was beginning to creep
round the edge of the table towards me.I dared not lose another moment.With a loud call for help, I darted to the other side of the table,
and made a dash for the pulley.But, quick as lightning, he pushed the table towards me, jamming me
securely between it and the wall, with my outstretched hand just a
foot away from the cord on which my salvation depended.And then he laughed, and I turned a little dizzy, for a madman's
laugh at such close quarters is not good to hear, or to see. The woman
was battering now at the door, calling incoherently to him to open it,
and to me to tell her what was the matter. He paid no attention to her
cries. I do not think he heard them. He leant forward over the table,
the length of
which just prevented his reaching me, and struck towards me with the
stiletto, laughing all the time. I summoned all my strength to push
the table away, and release myself sufficiently to reach the
pulley.Useless! What was my power compared to a maniac's? He held me
there, securely pinioned."Get someone to break the door open," I shouted to the woman
outside, and I heard her run along the passage, screaming wildly. Then
a new thought seemed to flash into his mind."I must be quick," he said, and he pulled a chair towards him, and
began to wedge it between the table and the wall behind him.I felt desperate. The woman had ceased calling, and must have run
out into the garden, for there was no sound at all in the house; in
another second Mr. Magnus would come to my side of the table, and it
would be a struggle at close quarters, with long odds on his side,
since he was armed and free.I gave one piercing scream for help; the next instant Mr. Magnus
had sprung towards me, and I was struggling for my life.To me it seemed an eternity; but in reality it cannot have lasted a
moment, for just as my frenzied grasp of his wrist relaxed, there was
a crash of broken glass, and with a bound a man had leapt from the
window-sill across the room, and seizing the madman from behind,
dragged him off me.I don't know what happened during the next quarter of an hour, for
though I was not unconscious, I was too shaken to realize what was
going on; but at the end of that time I found that Mr. Magnus,
dissolved in imbecile tears, was lying, bound and helpless, in an
arm-chair, with a huge, stalwart man standing over him, while the
housekeeper was hovering round me, sobbing out distraught
apologies."I knew he was queer," she reiterated, "but I never thought he
would break out like that. You must have reminded him somehow of the
lady that jilted him, and that always did upset him. Dear, dear,
another minute, and he would have killed you!""What are you going to do with him now?" I asked. "It is most
unsafe--he is quite mad.""Oh, my husband will look after him right enough," she answered,
indicating the stalwart man. "He would never have left the house at
all, if he had known a lady was coming. But we will send for the
doctor, the one that knows Mr. Magnus, and if he must be put away, why
he must be. Only it means the loss of home and wages to us."The sound of approaching wheels told me that my cab had come, and
so thankful was I at my newly-regained safety that I am afraid I did
not trouble my head with any further considerations as to the
advisability of Mr. Magnus being at large. I simply gathered up my
small amount of remaining strength and fled from The Gables, shaking
the dust thereof from my feet, and thinking how very unpleasant it
would have been if the housekeeper's husband had come just too late,
and Mr. Magnus had succeeded in plunging his stiletto into my
heart.To Mr. Leighton I merely said that, as Mr. Magnus did not seem
quite right in his head, I had not pursued negotiations with him,
and that I
thought the best plan would be to write about the pearls. This he
accordingly did, and receiving a cheque by return of post, the matter
dropped.But I have often thought of my narrow escape, and wondered whether
Mr. Philip Magnus, of The Gables, near Brentham, will yet succeed in
avenging his wrongs, and also whether in such a risky profession as
pearl-broking the game was always worth the candle.At all events, I resolved that I would have no more private
interviews with unknown customers, and that in future discretion
should take the place of valour with me.CHAPTER IX.THERE is no doubt that a profession entailing continued anxiety
about other people's property is rather a strain on one's faculties,
and although some weeks had passed since my last alarm, I felt that a
rest would do me no harm, and that I should work all the better if I
put aside pearl-broking altogether for a few days.So I accepted the invitation of some old friends, the Brockhursts,
to Hampshire, and gaily bade adieu to my employer, Mr. Leighton,
telling him not to expect me until he saw me.I returned to his keeping all the pearls that remained unsold of
those confided to me, retaining only one, the pink pearl, which was so
perfect as to be almost priceless.I had been unsuccessful in one or two attempts to sell it to
jewellers at the price I demanded, but I still hoped to effect the
sale of it
privately to some collector of rare jewels, and I therefore took it
everywhere with me in a safe and secret pocket in my dress.When I arrived at Hurst Dene I was warmly welcomed by the
Brockhurst family--father, mother, and children and Mrs. Brockhurst
led me to my room, and prepared to have a long talk with me."I am free, for a wonder," she said, "and I want to hear all your
news and tell you all about everybody here, and then we shall start
fair.""I suppose you have a tremendous party, as usual?" I said. "You are
never happy, Fannie, unless you are entertaining about two dozen
people. What have you done with them all?""My dear," she said, "I have sent all of them to the flower
show. George and I felt as if we must have a little peace; so I said I
must be in to receive you, and he conducted them all there, and then
sneaked away home. Now I'll tell you all about them."It was even a larger house party than I had anticipated.To begin with, there was the newest millionaire, an Australian,
young, good-looking, pleasant, with more money than he knew how to
spend, and a generous, liberal way of spending as much as he could on
all his friends.There were three young couples, the usual riding, bicycling,
tennis-playing pairs that one finds in country houses, three
unattached young men, and a rich cousin, old and cranky, who had come
uninvited in order to look after his only daughter and heiress, whom
he was always suspecting of a latent tendency to make a mésalliance.Their name was Fenton, and I had met the daughter, Adela, in town
more than once, and liked her very much.Lastly, there was the millionaire's secretary, a Mr. Blount, who
went everywhere with him, and had more influence over him, people
said, than anyone else in the world. They were, in fact, almost like
two brothers, though two more opposite men could not be imagined,
Mr. Anderson
being tall, fair, débonnair, and social,
and favoured exceptionally by fortune in every way, while Mr. Blount
was rather short, dark, saturnine, and, barring his lately acquired
salary, penniless.At the moment that I was introduced to them I felt a presentiment
that Mr. Blount and I would have some unpleasant experience
together.Outwardly we got on very well from the first, and indeed he very
soon singled me out for attention, but I felt sure that he did not
like me really any better than I liked him, and that his apparent
admiration, a little too obtrusive sometimes, was assumed for the sake
of frustrating the friendship which Mr. Anderson began to establish
with me."Mollie," said Fannie Brockhurst to me, seriously, at the end of
the first week, "I wish you would not encourage Mr. Blount. He is not
half good enough for you, and besides--" she broke off,
hesitating."Besides what?" I said, "I don't like Mr. Blount at all, and I find
it difficult to be always civil to him.""Oh, that's all right," she rejoined brightening, "then I may speak
openly to you. The fact is, dear, I have seen him playing the same
game before; he may be in earnest this time, but on every occasion
when Mr. Anderson has shown preference for any woman's society,
Mr. Blount has paid her marked attention, and with the same
result. Mr. Anderson, who has a charming nature, has thought it unfair
to put himself in rivalry with his secretary, feeling that his own
wealth might place Mr. Blount at a disadvantage, and has, therefore,
withdrawn."Mr. Blount has then pretended that his suit is rejected, and has
withdrawn also, his only motive being to prevent Mr. Anderson's
marriage, which would not suit his plans at all."I quite agreed with Mrs. Brockhurst's opinion, but it was
difficult, if not impossible, for me to shake off Mr. Blount, so
persistent was he in his efforts to monopolise me.Mr. Anderson's great friendship for him made it still less easy,
for he often spoke to me in glowing terms of "Dick," as he called
him, and would
have resented any slight offered to his secretary.A singular chance, namely, the accidental mixing up of two
telegrams, one intended for me being placed in Mr. Blount's envelope,
and vice versâ, revealed to me that this
apparently prosperous young man was in serious money difficulties, and
was in want of a large sum in cash within a very short time. He made a
plausible explanation to me of what the message meant, when the
mistake was discovered, and I accepted it as though the whole matter
was a joke, and of no consequence to either of us, but I had caught a
look on his face when I handed him the telegram and asked for my own,
that told me he was exceedingly wroth and troubled.It was only a day or two after this that another slight mischance
occurred, which also seemed trivial enough at the time. This was the
breaking of a string of pearls that Adela Fenton wore always round her
neck. They were strung in a single row, with a diamond clasp, and
there was a history attached to them, which Adela had laughingly related one night
when some one had admired the necklace."Father gave it to me on my last birthday," she said, "and he was
told that it belonged formerly to a famous singer who prized it
greatly. It was a royal gift to her, on the occasion of her first
brilliant success, and she had never unclasped it from her neck since
the night when a King's hand placed it there. She was taken ill some
years afterwards with a malignant fever, and at her death the
necklace, which had remained round her neck all the time, was found to
be quite discoloured. The stones looked like dull grey pebbles. Her
heirs removed it, and sold it to a jeweller, who had it carried down
by divers to the bottom of the sea and fastened there to a rock. After
thirty years it was brought up again, when the pearls had recovered
all their former whiteness and lustre."I was interested in this legend, and asked to look at the
necklace."I seldom take it off," said Adela, "only now and then to break the
spell in case I should share the actress's fate. Here it is,
Mrs. Delamere."I looked at it with attention the pearls were remarkably good ones,
and I noticed that it had lately been re-strung. It was handed round
for inspection, and I fancied that two people looked at it with
special interest, Mr. Blount and a young barrister called Harry
Duncan, who was thought to be in love with Adela, and was in
consequence severely snubbed by her father.At the moment when the necklace broke, Adela had just finished a
game of tennis, and we were all standing in a group discussing the
play, and making up a new set.She gave a cry of dismay, and the next instant the pearls fell in a
shower around her.We all stopped to pick them up, and Mr. Blount dived under a
rose-bush for some, and came out with several in the palm of his
hand. She collected and counted them all gradually, and, putting them
into a small box, carried them up to her room.When we went upstairs to bed that evening she linked her arm
affectionately in mine, and asked me to come and brush my hair in her room.I was longer than usual in undressing, as it happened, and when at
last, brush in hand and clad in a dressing-gown, I ran along the
passage to her bedroom, it was nearly twelve o'clock, and the lights
in the upper part of the house had been put out.As I passed a corner of the passage, the rustle of a dress and a
subdued whisper caught my ear.In the flickering light thrown by my candle I could only
distinguish the back of a man moving quickly away, but the other
person who was coming towards me, and who had not seen my light
quickly enough to evade me, I saw quite plainly before she turned
aside into a room and shut the door. She was one of the housemaids, a
rather pretty, untidy girl whom I had seen, without noticing her much,
once or twice.I wondered who her fellow whisperer was, and what she was doing,
and thought it was probably nothing very interesting.The only point to which my mind recurred was that the man who was
hurrying away seemed familiar to me. It was, I felt sure, not one of
the men-servants, but one of the gentlemen staying in the house."How late you are," said Adela; "now come and sit here, and I'll
brush your hair for you. I always admire your hair, Mrs. Delamere,
because it's so wavy and such a glorious colour, and what a heap of it
you have."I guessed from her manner that she had something to confide in me,
and I drew her on gently until at last it all came out. She and Henry
Duncan were in love with one another, and were secretly engaged, but
the affair was hopeless, as her father had said he would never permit
her to marry anyone who was not in receipt of a minimum income of
£1,000 a year.Harry had £150 a year allowance from his people and his
profession, a briefless one at present. What was to be done?She had been putting away some of her jewellery while she talked
and as she took out, a tray containing the broken string of pearls I asked
leave to look at them.I examined the clasp, and I saw that the string close to it must
have been partly cut through before the final threads gave way. Then I
looked at the pearls. I had a sort of detective feeling on me, and
felt a sudden impulse to do these things.Adela was silent, waiting for my advice about her engagement."When did you last take this necklace off before it broke," I
asked.She blushed vividly, to my surprise."Why do you ask?" she stammered."Because," I said, handing them back to her, "your pearls have been
changed since that night when you told us their history. Some are the
same and others very good imitations, that is all."The colour fled as suddenly from her cheeks as it had come into
them."How do you know, Mrs. Delamere?" she gasped. "Oh, it can't be
true! What makes you think so?""I don't think so," I said; "I know it. I have studied pearls, and
I can detect imitations at once. I can tell you something more about
your necklace, if you wish to; but I don't want to distress you,
Adela. Only it is safer, perhaps, for you to know it.""Tell me," she said hurriedly.I could not account for her agitation; it was, I felt sure, caused
by some feeling outside the natural grief at the loss of her
stones."The string has been partly cut," I said, "see, here by the
clasp. Your necklace was bound to break before long."She clasped her hands together and burst into tears."Oh, what shall I do?" she said. "No one must ever know
it. Mrs. Delamere, promise me you will keep my secret."I promised not to tell anyone against her wish, and gradually
soothed her, and finally she gave me the whole of her confidence.The only occasion on which the necklace had been taken off was on
an evening, two days before it broke, when Henry Duncan had unclasped it from
her neck, and, forgetting to put it back, had kept it in his pocket
for some hours, till an opportunity came for returning it."I know he is very hard up," she sobbed, "but I am quite certain he
would not change my pearls; only supposing it should come out that he
had them in his possession that day, how awful it would be. I would
not risk it for the world."I quite sympathised with her feeling about it, and at the same time
I felt a most absolute conviction that Henry Duncan had not taken the
pearls, and that someone else in the house had done so, and had made a
deliberate plan beforehand.When at last I left her, consoled by my promise that no one should
know without her permission, my mind was full of vague surmises, and I
lay awake all the rest of the night trying to solve the problem.And just before morning the possible solution flashed into my head
with the sudden certainty of an inspiration, and I decided at once
what I would do in order to discover the thief and take the weight off poor Adela's
heart. Accordingly, I engaged Mr. Anderson in conversation, and
leading him skilfully to the subject of his hobbies, I found that he
was interested in the acquisition of curios, and especially of rare
jewels.This was exactly what I hoped for, and I followed it up by telling
him that I had been entrusted with the sale of a pink pearl whose
price was almost prohibitive, and that I would show it to him if he
liked.I took it to the library so that he might examine it quietly, and
away from the other guests, and here we were joined by Mr. Blount, who
never failed to interrupt any conversation between us as quickly as
possible.Mr. Anderson did not hesitate at all about the price for the pearl,
large as it was, and arranged for the immediate purchase of it. When
this was completed, and I handed the pearl to him, he said he should
like to show me some other stones and jewels of various kinds which he
had bought from time to time.He asked Mr. Blount to fetch the case containing them, and when it
arrived, he detached a small gold key from his watch chain, saying: "Just
open it, Dick, old man; I want to show some of my pretty things to
Mrs. Delamere, and we will put the pearl in here, too."Then turning to me, he added: "I never part with that key; it's
always on my chain, and under my pillow at night in company with my
revolver. I have a dislike to keeping things in banks or safes; I like
to have my things about me, ready to hand when I take a fancy to look
at them."I pretended to be absorbed in the contents of the case, and
deliberately asked Mr. Anderson to let me take an amulet he was
showing me to the light, knowing that he would consent, and would
follow me to the window.Then I watched Mr. Blount, and saw him adroitly withdraw the key,
hold it in his hands for a moment with his back to us, and then slip
it into the lock again.That was all I wanted.There was nothing else to be done now, but to wait for Mr. Blount's
next move.It was not long in coming.The next day he said he must go to town for a few hours, on
important business.I waited till he was well on his way, and then I sought out
Mr. Anderson.I told him in confidence, having wrung an unwilling consent from
Adela, the whole story of her necklace; and then I said to him:"Mr. Anderson, I am quite sure that I have traced the thief, but it
is the very last man whom you would suspect, and before I tell you his
name, I want you, if you don't mind, to get your jewel case, and see
if your pink pearl is safely there."He was amazed, and even the liking I knew he felt for me was
scarcely proof against his evident annoyance."I will do as you wish," he replied, "but I am at a loss to
understand what you can possibly mean."He fetched the box and opened it, lifting up each of the trays in
turn.The pearl was not there!"Now," I said, "I am going to ask you one more favour. Will you say
nothing about this occurrence to anyone? Will you wait quietly till
to-morrow, and will you then open your jewel-case when you are alone?
If the pearl is there will you bring it to me?"He hesitated for some moments, then he acquiesced.Mr. Blount returned from town that evening, and devoted himself to
me more persistently than ever.I detected a new motive in this.He had felt mistrustful and suspicious of me ever since the sale of
the pink pearl; he did not understand how it came about that I was in
a position to sell jewels of this value, and no doubt it had occurred
to him that possibly I understood pearls, and that danger lay in that
direction.He had urged Mr. Anderson to leave Hurst Dene, telling him that
some business in town required his personal attention, and it was
settled they should depart in two days' time, and I knew that the
reason was to divide me and the pink pearl as much as possible.The next day Mr. Anderson sent a message asking me to come and speak to
him in the library.I guessed his reason, but I was a little nonplussed when I found
Mr. Blount awaiting me there too, though the look on his face told me
something had happened."Mrs. Delamere," said Mr. Anderson, "I can see you are surprised to
find Mr. Blount here. But I like doing everything as much on the
surface as possible, and I have had an affection for this man that was
almost brotherly; therefore I wish to let him down easily. Here is the
pearl; I found it replaced in the box this morning, and I asked
him"--he carefully avoided saying "Dick,"--"if he knew anything about
its temporary disappearance. He then confessed to me that he had felt
doubtful as to its real value, and had taken it to show an expert who
had pronounced it all right. It was exceedingly kind of him to act in
my interest in this matter, no doubt; but I am not sure I appreciate
the kindness. In fact, I have just owned up to him that there is a
mystery in which you and I are interested, that we should be glad of his
help to clear up. Do you give me leave to tell him more?""Let me see the pearl, please," I said quietly.After scrutinizing it I handed it back. "This is not the pearl," I
said, "though it is an excellent imitation of it. I have something
more to tell you, Mr. Anderson, which I have learnt since we last
spoke of this. The under-housemaid here has just confessed to me that
she partially cut the string of Miss Fenton's necklace at the
instigation of a gentleman staying here--who asked her to do it in
order to help him to win a bet he had made that the necklace would
break--she declines to tell the name of the gentleman, and she only
confessed it at all because she was offered a higher bribe than he
gave her, and was assured that the fact of the string having been cut
by her was already known. If pressure were put upon her, no doubt she
would give the name, but I have left that for you to decide."I forebore to look at Mr. Blount, but his voice told me what his
sensations were."I congratulate Mrs. Delamere on her cleverness," he said, "and if
I had known that a lady detective was disguised as a guest of this
house, I should have laid my plans better. What are you going to do
with me?" he concluded, defiantly, turning to Mr. Anderson."You have played your last card badly," Mr. Anderson answered. "If
you had not ventured to insult this lady you would have done better
for yourself. As it is, I don't intend to prosecute you. You must hand
over to me as much of the price you got for the pearl as remains in
your possession, and you must sign a confession. I shall, of course,
buy back my pearl, and Miss Fenton's also. And you can go to the--" he
stopped."I won't say what I was going to at this moment," he
continued. "Kindly sit where you are, and don't attempt to leave the
room. I wish to speak privately to Mrs. Delamere."He led me to the window-seat, and spoke a few words to me, and then
I left them together. They departed for town the next day, and a few
days afterwards, when I returned to my flat, taking Adela Fenton with me for a visit,
Mr. Anderson called, and we had a long talk together. And the result
of it all is, that Adela Fenton has her pearls back again, and is
engaged, with her father's consent, to Harry Duncan, who is
Mr. Anderson's new private secretary at a salary of £850 a
year.And the pink pearl has again changed hands, for it belongs now to
me, and was given to me, as one of my wedding presents on the happy
day when I became Mrs. Anderson, and gave up the profession of
pearl-broking once and for all.THE END.Advertisement page at the back of Beatrice
Heron-Maxwell's The Adventures of a Lady
Pearl-Broker.
      Advertisement page at the back of Beatrice
Heron-Maxwell's The Adventures of a Lady
Pearl-Broker.
      Advertisement page at the back of Beatrice
Heron-Maxwell's The Adventures of a Lady
Pearl-Broker.
      Advertisement page at the back of Beatrice
Heron-Maxwell's The Adventures of a Lady
Pearl-Broker.
      Advertisement page at the back of Beatrice
Heron-Maxwell's The Adventures of a Lady
Pearl-Broker.
      Advertisement page at the back of Beatrice
Heron-Maxwell's The Adventures of a Lady
Pearl-Broker.
      Advertisement page at the back of Beatrice
Heron-Maxwell's The Adventures of a Lady
Pearl-Broker.
      Advertisement page at the back of Beatrice
Heron-Maxwell's The Adventures of a Lady
Pearl-Broker.