CHAPTER XLI
A DELICATE ERRAND
It looked like being a long, dull evening for Steel if he were not goingto the theatre or anything of that kind. He generally read till abouteleven o'clock, after which he sat up for another couple of hoursplotting out the day's task for to-morrow. To-night he could only wanderrestlessly about his conservatory, snipping off a dead leaf here andthere and wondering where the whole thing was going to end.
With a certain sense of relief David heard the front door-bell trillabout eleven o'clock. Somebody was coming to see him, and it didn'tmatter much who in Steel's present frame of mind. But he swept into thestudy with a feeling of genuine pleasure as Hatherly Bell was announced.
"My dear fellow, I'm delighted to see you," he cried. "Take the bigarmchair. Let me give you a cigar and a whisky and soda and make youcomfortable. That's better."
"I'm tired out," Bell said. "In London all day, and since six with Cross.Can you put me up for the night?"
"My bachelor bedroom is always ready, Bell."
"Thanks. I don't fancy you need be under any apprehension that anybodyhas spirited Van Sneck away. In the first place Henson, who seems to havediscovered what happened, is in a terrible state about it. He wanted verybadly to remain at Littimer, but when he heard that Van Sneck had leftthe hospital he came down here; in fact, we travelled together. Of coursehe said nothing whatever about Van Sneck, whom he is supposed to knownothing about, but I could see that he was terribly disturbed. The worstof it is that Cross was going to get me to operate on Van Sneck; andHeritage, who seems wonderfully better, was going to assist."
"Is your unfortunate friend up to that kind of thing now?" David asked.
"I fancy so. Do you know that Heritage used to have a fairly goodpractice near Littimer Castle? Lord Littimer knows him well. I wantHeritage to come into this. I want to get at the reason why Henson hasbeen so confoundedly good to Heritage. For years he has kept his eye uponhim; for years he has practically provided him with a home at Palmer's.And when Heritage mentions Henson's name he always does so with a kind offorced gratitude."
"You think that Heritage is going to be useful to us?"
"I fancy so. Mind you, it is only my idea--what I call intuition, forwant of a better word. And what have you been doing lately?"
David proceeded to explain, giving the events of the afternoon in fulldetail. Bell followed the account with the deepest interest. Then heproceeded to tell his own story. David appeared to be fascinated with thetale of the man with the thumb-nail.
"So Miss Chris hopes to hypnotise the man with the thumb," he said. "Youhave seen more of her than I have, Bell. Does she strike you as shestrikes me--a girl of wonderfully acute mind allied to a pluck andaudacity absolutely brilliant?"
"She is that and more," Bell said, warmly. "Now that she is free to actshe has developed wonderfully. Look how cleverly she worked out thatRembrandt business, how utterly she puzzled Henson, and how she helped meto get into Littimer's good books again without Henson even guessing atthe reason. And now she has forced the confidence of that rascal Merritt.She has saved him from a gaol into which she might have thrown him at anymoment, she has convinced him that she is something exceedingly brilliantin the way of an adventuress, with a great _coup_ ahead. Later on shewill use Merritt, and a fine hard-cutting tool she will find him."
"Where is Henson at the present moment?" David asked.
"I left him in London this afternoon," Bell replied. "But I haven't theslightest doubt in the world that he has made his way to Brighton by thistime. In all probability he has gone to Longdean."
Bell paused as the telephone bell rang out shrilly. The mere sound of itthrilled both of them with excitement. And what a useful thing thetelephone had proved!
"Are you there?" came the quick, small whisper. "Is that you, Mr. Steel?I am Enid Henson."
There was a long pause, during which David was listening intently. Bellcould see him growing rigid with the prospect of something keen, alert,and vigorous.
"Bell is here with me at this moment," he said. "Just wait a minutewhilst I tell him. Don't go away, please. Under the circumstances itmight be dangerous for me to ring you ... Just a moment. Here's apretty mess."
"Well," Bell said, impatiently, "I'm only a mere man, after all."
"Henson is at Longdean; he turned up an hour ago, and at the presentmoment is having his supper in the library before going to bed. But thatis not the worst part of it. Williams heard the dogs making a great noiseby the gates, and went to see what was wrong. Some poor, demented fellowhad climbed over the wall, and the dogs were holding him up. Fortunately,he did not seem to be conscious of his danger, and as he stood still thehounds did him no harm. Williams was going to put the intruder into theroad again when Miss Henson came up. And whom do you suppose the poor,wandering tramp to be?"
Bell pitched his cigar into the grate full of flowers and jumpedto his feet.
"Van Sneck, for a million," he cried. "My head to a cocoanut on it."
"The same. They managed to get the poor fellow into the house beforeWilliams brought Henson from the lodge, and he's in the stables now in arather excited condition. Now, I quite agree with Miss Henson that Hensonmust be kept in ignorance of the fact, also that Van Sneck must be gotaway without delay. To inform the hospital authorities would be to spoileverything and play into Henson's hands. But he must be got awayto-night."
"Right you are. We'll go and fetch him. _Et apres_?"
"_Et apres_ he will stay here. He shall stay _here_, and you shall saythat it is dangerous to remove him. Cross shall be told and Marley shallbe told, and the public shall be discreetly kept in ignorance for thepresent. I'll go over there at once, as there is no time to be lost. MissHenson suggests that I should come, and she tells me that Williams willwait at the lodge-gates for me. But you are going to stay here."
"Oh, indeed! And why am I going to stay here?"
"Because, my dear friend, I can easily manage the business single-handed,and because you must run no risk of meeting Henson yonder. You are notnow supposed to know where the family are, nor are you supposed to takethe faintest interest in them. Stay here and make yourself comfortabletill I return.... Are you there? I will be at Longdean as soon aspossible and bring Van Sneck here. No, I won't ring off; you had betterdo that. I shall be over in less than an hour."
David hung up the receiver and proceeded to don a short covert coat and acap. In the breast-pocket of the coat he placed a revolver.
"Just as well to be on the safe side," he said. "Though I am not likelyto be troubled with the man with the thumb again. Still, Henson may haveother blackguards; he may even know where Van Sneck is at the presentmoment, for all I know to the contrary."
"I feel rather guilty letting you go alone," Bell said.
"Not a bit of it," said David, cheerfully. "Smoke your cigar, and ifyou need any supper ring for it. You can safely leave matters in myhands. Van Sneck shall stay here till he is fit, and then you shalloperate upon him. After that he ought to be as clay in the hands of thepotter. So long."
And David went off gaily enough. He kept to the cliffs for the first partof the distance, and then struck off across the fields in the directionof Longdean. The place was perfectly quiet, the village was all indarkness as he approached the lodge-gates of the Grange. Beyond the driveand between the thick, sad firs that shielded the house he could see thecrimson lights gleaming here and there. He could catch the rumble andscratch in the bushes, and ever and again a dog whined. The big gate wasclosed as David peeped in searching for his guide.
"Williams," he whispered; "Williams, where are you?"
But no reply came. The silence was full of strange, rushing noises, therush of blood in David's head. He called again and again, but no replycame. Then he heard the rush and fret of many feet, the cry of a pack ofhounds, a melancholy cry, with a sombre joy in it. He saw a lightgleaming fitfully in the belt of firs.
"No help for it," David muttered. "I must chance my l
uck. I never saw adog yet that I was afraid of. Well, here goes."
He scrambled over the wall and dropped on the moist, clammy earth on theother side. He fumbled forward a few steps, and then stopped suddenly,brought up all standing by the weird scene which was being solemnlyenacted under his astonished eyes.