"do you still wish me to go?" inquired gerald politely, and half opening the sitting-room door.
"no," cried rebb sharply. "shut that door again and explain yourself."
haskins returned to his seat. "does what i say need explanation?"
"certainly. you insinuate that my income has to do with mavis."
"you place the matter in a nutshell, major. it has."
rebb rose again, with the look of a man at bay. "you dare to----"
"i dare anything in the cause of mavis," interrupted gerald imperiously. "don't make any mistake about my attitude, major rebb. if you act honestly, i am here as your friend; but if you declare war i am willing to accept your challenge."
if a look could have slain the bold speaker, haskins would have dropped dead where he stood; but he bore rebb's fierce gaze without flinching, and waited for him to speak. the major made a gigantic effort, and gained control of himself sufficiently to open his mouth for a quiet question. "where did you learn this?" he demanded.
"from the will of captain julian durham at somerset house."
"indeed! more spying!" sneered the other, but his lip quivered.
haskins shrugged his shoulders, and took scarcely any notice of the insult. "that is a weak speech to make," he remarked.
rebb passed a handkerchief across his pale lips. "who told you about the will?" he asked quietly.
"it was more an intuition than anything else," said haskins, anxious to shield mrs. geary, whose chance words had put him on the track. "i saw that mavis was sane, and that you were shutting her up for some reason. money was the reason that suggested itself."
"and you searched in somerset house?"
"not personally. macandrew did that, as my lawyer."
"great heavens!" stormed rebb, growing darkly red, "is macandrew in this affair also? will you tell me, mr. haskins, how many people you have succeeded in interesting in my private business?"
"only tod and myself know about the matter so far--i refer to the will, of course. but others may come to know of it, unless----"
"ah," said rebb quickly, "now we are coming to the gist of the matter, mr. haskins. unless what?"
"unless you give mavis her proper position in the world----"
"and consent to your marriage with her, i suppose?"
haskins bowed. "you save me the trouble of an explanation."
"there is another explanation to be made," said rebb, trying to appear calm, "and one that in justice to myself i must make. the will----"
"pardon me," interrupted gerald coolly, "but mrs. jennings knows all about your ward's alleged insanity."
"her true insanity," cried rebb warmly, "everyone in denleigh and silbury and leegarth knows about the poor girl, and that she is watched by bellaria dondi."
"your useful, elderly relative. just so. and does all the neighborhood know about julian durham's will?"
"anyone who goes to somerset house can learn what he wishes, as you have done," retorted the major. "i am not bound to make my private affairs public down here. you apparently are trying to do your best to provide gossip for the neighborhood."
"well, yes. i mean to get mavis out of the pixy's house."
rebb jumped up and banged on the table furiously. "i defy you. yes, i defy you," he almost shouted, "and you shall not get her out of that house. she is well treated, and----"
"one moment. i never said that she was not well treated," said gerald swiftly, "but, badly as you are behaving, i presume your conscience does not allow you to ill-treat mavis, seeing that you are enjoying her fortune."
"take care! take care! i may strike you."
"by all means. it will give me the chance to take you into court for assault and make the matter of the pixy's house public."
"ah," rebb looked scathingly at the bold speaker, "you are afraid."
"oh no. if you strike me, i shall probably give you a good thrashing, which, to my mind, you richly deserve. in an ordinary case i would thrash you and let you go: but my desire is to force you into taking up a public position of defence."
"i am quite willing to do so," said rebb violently, "you can employ macandrew or any lawyer you like. the will is in my favor, and i have carried out its provisions."
"pardon me, but that is just what you have not done. mavis, by the will, was to be educated. she can neither read nor write."
"the doctor said----"
"produce your doctor who said that her brain could not understand, or could not bear teaching. it is no use, major. whatever you may say about mavis, to suit your own ends, you are well aware that she is perfectly sane, and that you are keeping her shut up in the pixy's house to enjoy her money."
"you dare--you dare----"
"i dare now, and i shall dare in open court," retorted the young man.
"i wonder i don't kill you," muttered rebb, in impotent fury.
"in the first place you can't; in the second, if you did you would only be tried for murder instead of conspiracy."
"conspiracy? conspiracy, damn you?"
"yes, against the liberty of a subject."
rebb had proved himself to be a brave man in several south african engagements, so it was not fear that prevented him from falling upon the man who thus defied him and meddled with his most private affairs. but with all his fury--and he could scarcely articulate for rage--he was sufficiently master of himself to know that to strike haskins would only force him into open court. rebb had no wish that the will of durham and his guardianship of mavis should be a topic of conversation with his friends, or appear in print for the delectation of the public. he therefore kept his hands down by his sides, and subdued his wrath, as best he could. but the effort nearly choked him.
"you have said all that you can say, mr. haskins," he growled, in a guttural voice filled with menace, "so you can go."
"certainly," rejoined gerald again. "and your attitude?"
"i stand by the will of my brother officer," said rebb, with suppressed fury, "i enjoy the durham property until mavis marries. she is not fit to marry, being insane, therefore----"
"you will enjoy the durham property until the end of your life."
"yes!" said rebb determinedly, "i do hold to that. mavis has all she wants and is happy where she is."
"because you have filled her mind with lying tales of english girls all being brought up in seclusion as she is being brought up. but on mavis' twenty-first birthday, rebb, when she hopes to come out into the world? what then? how will you restrain her? will she be happy then?"
"i am not bound to tell you of my plans regarding my ward," said the major stiffly, "on her twenty-first birthday i shall know how to act."
"good-night!" said gerald abruptly, and made for the door.
"stop," cried rebb imperatively. "what about your attitude?"
haskins wheeled at the door. "i love mavis, and i intend to make her my wife. that is my attitude."
"i see," sneered the major; "you are after her money."
the insult was too contemptible to be noticed. "think what you like, major, only remember one thing. if you harm mavis in any way, or transfer her to another hiding-place, i shall hold you accountable."
"in what way?" questioned the other contemptuously.
"i shall find some relative of mavis, and get him or her to contest the will. that will bring everything out."
"very probably, but mavis has no relative. julian durham was the last of his race, and so, since his wife was dead, left his child for me to look after. had he or she any relative i should not have been appointed guardian. i stand by the will. good-night."
gerald hesitated, and wondered whether he would say anything more, but on second thoughts he decided to hold his peace, and abruptly left the room. after all, there was no more to be arranged. he knew the attitude which rebb had taken up, and rebb knew his attitude. it only remained to fight for possession of the girl.
as haskins walked back to silbury, in the rapidly gathering darkness, he admitted that rebb's position was a strong one. mavis was perfectly happy, and had all she wanted. the loss of liberty did not trouble her, since she had the spacious grounds of the pixy's house for a playground, and, moreover, thought that all english girls were brought up in the same way. had she known that this was a lie she might have fretted after liberty, and then there would have been some ground to go upon. but were she taken into court she could not deny but that her guardian had been kind, and had given her all she required. this reasoning was all in favor of rebb.
then again, since rebb swore that mavis was insane, he was quite justified in shutting her up, so long as she was treated kindly. certainly could she be proved to be sane, his position would then be a very awkward one, as it would force him to explain why he had used the girl's money all these years, while keeping her in durance vile. but, as tod had said and gerald had echoed, "much could be done with money," and if things came to be made public rebb might be able to bribe a couple of doctors to certify to mavis' insanity. in that case she would be shut up in a public asylum, and rebb--after setting aside a certain sum for her maintenance--would enjoy the durham income for the rest of his wicked life. the plot was very cunningly arranged, and in standing by the will rebb took up an almost unassailable position.
many another man would have been daunted by the difficulties thus presented by a survey of the position. but gerald was in love, and to a lover nothing is impossible that stands in the way of his gaining his mistress. haskins did not know for the moment exactly how to act, but in one way or another he determined to force rebb's strong hand. by warning rebb he had certainly put him on his guard against any possible elopement: but he also had forced him to behave in a more or less straightforward manner. knowing that he was watched the major could not smuggle mavis into another hiding-place.
during the conversation gerald had intended to mention bellaria's dread of the coral hand, so that he might learn if it was really the tána society that she feared. but the chances were that rebb would not have told him, and moreover the introduction of a new subject might have complicated matters. haskins therefore congratulated himself that he had kept silence. also, for the moment, it was unnecessary to draw rebb's attention to the wonderful likeness between charity and mavis. doubtless rebb was well aware of it, and it was more than likely that rebb could explain it. still, bearing in mind mrs. pelham odin's offer to pass off mavis as charity, should it be necessary, gerald resolved to hold his peace. at one moment he was inclined to storm the pixy's house secretly and elope with mavis, hiding her, as above, under the name of charity, who would then be out of the way as mrs. macandrew. but rebb would know who had taken mavis away, and--standing by the will, which gave him the guardianship of mavis until she was twenty-one--would make dire trouble. gerald did not wish to be arrested, as he could do little good for mavis if imprisoned.
it only remained then to return to london and to see tod. in one way or another some start could be made towards extricating mavis from the clutches of her guardian; and when the start was made the desired end would be reached sooner or later. gerald therefore determined to leave silbury next morning, and to begin his campaign forthwith, assisted by tod. he felt very reluctant to leave the neighborhood without seeing mavis, but he was forced to. bellaria would now be on her guard, if he attempted to climb the wall. and gerald was very certain that geary had been sent to watch the pixy's house by his precious master. haskins had a revolver, as opposed to the yellow-handled knife about which mavis had talked, so he did not fear the encounter. but an open struggle would only damage the position of mavis, and impede any plans made for her rescue. knowing that rebb had the will, and swore to the reported insanity of mavis to strengthen his attitude, gerald was extremely anxious to move cautiously. in sheer desperation major rebb might call in the assistance of the law. much as haskins wished to force the man's hand, he did not want to do so by placing himself in the wrong. to take mavis from the guardianship of a man appointed by her father's will, would be a disobedience to the law of which rebb would take full advantage.
as the night was warm, gerald, having plenty of time, did not hurry himself. there was no moon, and the stars were covered with dun-hued clouds. very little light, therefore, came from above. nevertheless, the night was not entirely dark, as a faint luminous radiance was everywhere spread, and he could pick his way along the highroad very easily. although, following tod's advice, he had his revolver in his hip-pocket, he never thought that it would be necessary to use it. major rebb, as a civilized being, had refrained from actual violence, much as he apparently desired to use it. but then, he would only have taken to his fists. it was far otherwise with geary. that semi-civilized savage would undoubtedly have taken to his yellow-handled knife.
in the usual way in which intuitions came to haskins, the thought of this knife unexpectedly flashed into his mind when he topped the last rise of the hills. already he could see the glimmer of the silbury lights, and paused a moment to watch them, shining like stars under the muggy canopy of the heavy sky. but the knife-thought remained, and he turned his head uneasily from side to side, scenting danger, by his sixth sense. the feeling passed, and then came again stronger than ever when he began to walk on once more. he glanced back, and then swerved to one side, just in time to avoid the rush of a big black form which hurled itself out of the shadows. it was geary, who dashed towards him, missed, wheeled, and flung himself again on the young man.
haskins had walked to denleigh in his flannels, as the evening was so close, so he was a sufficiently easy mark in the semi-darkness, showing whitely like a negative against the gloom. geary clutched him in his powerful arms before he could swerve again, or draw his revolver, and then gerald realized with a shock of surprise that, save for a pair of dungaree trousers, the man was naked. not only that, but the upper part of his body had been rubbed with oil, and he slipped about like an eel. geary made no remark, nor did gerald speak, but the two men, the one big and burly, the other lithe and wiry, wrestled together for mastery. haskins believed that geary wished to get him down and stab him, but could not see if he held a knife. he certainly did not in his huge hands, but he might have had it strapped, sailor fashion, in the small of his back.
without a word the two men swung and swayed, geary wriggling and pressing gerald downward with his great weight. but haskins had lately taken lessons in jiu-jutsu, of which the negro was apparently ignorant; so he suddenly gave way, with an unexpected relaxing of all the muscles. geary uttered a guttural ejaculation of anger and surprise as he felt the looseness of the young man's body and found a moment afterwards that his big arms were empty. by making himself small, so to speak, gerald had slipped out of the negro's grip, and darted back with lightning speed. when geary swung round again to the assault he found himself facing a revolver.
nothing daunted, his hand slipped round to the back of his dungaree trousers, and a moment later gerald saw the steel glitter in the dim light, as geary rushed forward with uplifted hand. haskins did not wish to kill the man, as he was a necessary witness to save mavis, so he winged him. the bullet struck the negro's right arm, and the knife dropped, as he howled viciously. apparently dreading another shot, he sprang aside and then backward, and vanished. for some minutes gerald heard the pad-pad-pad of his bare feet on the highway, and became aware then, for the first time, that he had escaped a great danger.
picking up the knife, he replaced his revolver in his hip-pocket and walked swiftly towards silbury, wondering if rebb had sent the man to kill him. if so, geary had failed, and as there was no chance of another attempt being made on that night gerald did not trouble himself on the way to the town. he swiftly resolved to say nothing of his adventure, especially as any publicity might lead to revelations being made at the moment, while mavis' fate swung in the balance. but later gerald determined to bring geary to justice. he had the evidence of the knife. at the first street lamp he stopped and looked at the weapon. it was a dangerous piece of steel--a bowie knife, but the handle was of black wood. what then had become of the yellow-handled knife which mavis feared so greatly? gerald was too weary, and ached too much with his late struggle, to think over this problem. he therefore postponed all consideration until next morning.
on reaching the prince's head he sat down to an excellent meal, and held his peace about his adventures. after dinner he drank some coffee and smoked a couple of pipes. then he went to bed about ten o'clock, or a trifle later. shortly, in spite of the late excitement, he fell asleep.
when he awoke it was nine o'clock in the morning. feeling somewhat bruised and stiff--for geary's grasp was like that of an octopus--he decided to remain in bed, instead of taking the morning train to london. the afternoon train would do, he decided, so he rang for his breakfast to be served, intending to rise at midday. the chambermaid took his orders for breakfast, and seemed to be flustered, but before he could make inquiries she ran out of the room.
later, mrs. jennings herself arrived with the breakfast-tray, and looked excited as she placed it on the bed.
"oh, mr. haskins," she cried, with shining eyes, "such terrible news. that mad girl at the pixy's house has murdered miss bellaria, and has bolted."
"it is impossible," gasped haskins, starting up in bed.
"the milkman from leegarth has just brought the news, sir."
