218 been let during the occupation of the present owner?” Bell asked.
“No,” the agent replied. “But the present owner—as heir to the property—I am told, was interested in both 218 and 219, which used to be a kind of high-class convalescent home for poor clergy and the widows and daughters of poor clergy in want of a holiday. The one house was for the men and the other for the women, and both were furnished exactly alike; in fact, Mr. Gates’s landlord, the tenant of 219, bought the furniture exactly as it stands when the scheme fell through.”
Steel looked up swiftly. A sudden inspiration came to him.
“In that case what became of the precisely similar furniture in 218?” he asked.
“That I cannot tell you,” the agent said. “That house was let as it stood to some sham philanthropist whose name I forget. The whole thing was a fraud, and the swindler only avoided arrest by leaving the country. Probably the goods were stored somewhere or perhaps seized by some creditor. But I really can’t say definitely without looking the matter up. There are some books and prints now left in the house out of the wreck. We shall probably put them in a sale, only they have been overlooked. The whole lot will not fetch £5.”
“Would you take £5 for them?” Bell asked.
“Gladly. Even if only to get them carted away.”
Bell gravely produced a £5 note, for which he asked and received a receipt. Then he and Steel repaired to 218 once more, whence they recovered the Rembrandt, and subsequently returned the keys of the house to the agent. There was an air of repressed excitement about Bell which was not without its effect upon his companion. The cold, hard lines seemed to have faded from Bell’s face; there was a brightness about him that added to his already fine physical beauty.
“And now, perhaps, you will be good enough to explain,” David suggested.
“My dear fellow, it would take too long,” Bell cried. “Presently I am going to tell you the story of the tragedy of my life. You have doubtless wondered, as others have wondered, why I dropped out of the road when the goal was in sight. Well, your curiosity is about to be gratified. I am going to help you, and in return you are going to help me to come back into the race again. By way of a start, you are going to ask me to come and dine with you to-night.”
“At half-past seven, then. Nothing will give me greater pleasure.”
“Spoken like a man and a brother. We will dine, and I will tell you my story after the house is quiet. And if I ask you to accompany me on a midnight adventure you will not say me nay?”
“Not in my present mood, at any rate. Adventure, with a dash of danger in it, suits my present mood exactly. And if there is to be physical violence, so much the better. My diplomacy may be weak, but physically I am not to be despised in a row.”
“Well, we’ll try and avoid the latter, if possible,” Bell laughed. “Still, for your satisfaction, I may say there is just the chance of a scrimmage. And now I really must go, because I have any amount of work to do for Gates. Till half-past seven, au revoir.”
Steel lighted a cigarette and strolled thoughtfully homewards along the front. The more he thought over the mystery the more tangled it became. And yet he felt perfectly sure that he was on the right track. The discovery that both those houses had been furnished exactly alike at one time was a most important one. And David no longer believed that he had been to No. 219 on the night of the great adventure. Then he found himself thinking about Ruth Gates’s gentle face and lovely eyes, until he looked up and saw the girl before him.
“You—you wanted to speak to me?” he stammered.
“I followed you on purpose,” the girl said, quietly, “I can’t tell you everything, because it is not my secret to tell. But believe me everything will come out right in the end. Don’t think badly of me, don’t be hard and bitter because—”
“Because I am nothing of the kind,” David smiled. “It is impossible to look into a face like yours and doubt you. And I am certain that you are acting loyally and faithfully for the sake of others who—”
“Yes, yes, and for your sake, too. Pray try and remember that. For your sake, too. Oh, if you only knew how I admire and esteem you! If only—”
She paused with the deep blush crimsoning her face. David caught her hand, and it seemed to him for a moment that she returned the pressure.
“Let me help you,” he whispered. “Only be my friend and I will forgive everything.”
She gave him a long look of her deep, velvety eyes, she flashed him a little smile, and was gone.
Конец ознакомительного фрагмента.
Текст предоставлен ООО «ЛитРес».
Прочитайте эту книгу целиком, купив полную легальную версию на ЛитРес.
Безопасно оплатить книгу можно банковской картой Visa, MasterCard, Maestro, со счета мобильного телефона, с платежного терминала, в салоне МТС или Связной, через PayPal, WebMoney, Яндекс.Деньги, QIWI Кошелек, бонусными картами или другим удобным Вам способом.
