bank; and all accounts of receipts and payments she had placed in the hands of Vark, the lawyer. At any time that Goliath chose to arrive, she was ready to hand over the pawn-shop and property to him, after which it was her intention to leave.
As yet she had no idea in her head what was to become of her when the arrival of the lost heir reduced her to the position of a pauper. It had, indeed, occurred to her that it would be best to return to her tribe again, and take up the old gipsy life. On account of Goliath she had exiled herself from the Romany tents: so when he came into his inheritance she would be free to return thereto. As a wealthy man, Jimmy Dix, alias Goliath, would not care to spend his life in roaming the country with vagrants; and thus she would be relieved of his presence. Hagar was getting very tired of the shop and the weary life of Carby's Crescent; and often the nostalgia of the roads came upon her. Several times of late she had wished that Goliath would claim his heritage, and relieve her of the irksome task which she had taken on her own shoulders, out of gratitude to Jacob Dix. But as yet the absent heir had not made his appearance.
Hagar knew very well that Eustace Lorn was looking for him. Pursuant to the promise he had given her, and expecting the reward of her hand on his return, Lorn had been these many months on the trail of the missing man. All over England and Scotland had he tramped, inquiring of every gipsy, every vagrant, every town scamp, the whereabouts of Goliath; but all in vain, for Goliath seemed to have vanished completely. Indeed, Eustace began to fear that he was not in the United Kingdom, else he would certainly have heard of him, or the man would have seen in the newspapers the advertisement inquiring for his whereabouts. From time to time Eustace wrote to Hagar of his ill success, and received replies wherein she expressed her detestation of the shop, and bidding him continue his search; whereupon, encouraged to fresh exertions, Eustace would resume his wanderings. His adventures while thus engaged were many and various; and in the end his efforts were crowned with success.
One day, while Hagar was seated rather disconsolately in the back parlor, the side-door, which had been used by Dix for such of his friends as wished to dispose of stolen goods--a form of business which Hagar had abandoned--was opened boldly, and a tall man strode into the room. Hagar rose indignantly to repel the intruder, who had no right to enter by that way, when suddenly she saw his countenance, and fell back a step.
"Goliath!" she said with a pale face.
The tall man--he was almost a giant in point of height and size---nodded and smiled. He had closely-cropped red hair, and a rather brutal cast of countenance, by no means prepossessing. Again familiarily nodding to Hagar, who recoiled from him in aversion, he seated himself in a large armchair by the fire, which had formerly been used by dead Jacob Dix.
"My father's chair," said he, with a grin. "I have come to take possession of it, my dear."
"I am very glad to hear it," replied Hagar, recovering the use of her tongue. "Certainly it was about time, Mr. Dix."
"Don't call me Mister, or Dix, my dear! To you I shall always be Goliath--your Goliath."
"Indeed you shan't!" retorted Hagar, in a spirited manner. "I hate you now just as much as I did when you forced me to leave my people."
"That is uncommon cruel of you, seeing as you have been wearing my shoes all this time!"
"I have been wearing your father's shoes, you mean, and for your benefit solely. I did so simply because your father was good enough to take me in, after you had exiled me from the Romany."
"Oh, I know all about that, Cousin Hagar. We're cousins, ain't we?"
"Yes; and we are likely to continue cousins. But I'm tired of this sparring, Goliath. Where have you been all this time? and how did you learn that your father was dead?"
"Where I've been I'll tell you later," replied Goliath, rendered surly by the attitude of Hagar, "and as to how I knowed the old 'un was gone--why, a cove called Lorn told me just after I got out."
"Got out!" cried Hagar, noting the queer wording of the phrase; "so you have been in prison, Goliath!"
"You're a sharp one, you are!" grinned the red-haired man. "Yes, I've been in quod though I didn't intend to tell you so yet. I was Number Forty-three till a week ago, and they ticketed me for horse-coping. I got two years, and was took just arter you gave me the slip in New Forest; so now you know how I didn't see your noospaper notice about the old 'un kicking the bucket."
"You might speak of your father with more respect!" said Hagar, in a disdainful tone; "but what can one expect from a convict?"
"Come, none of that, cousin, or I'll twist your neck."
"You dare to lay a finger on me, and I'll kill you!" retorted Hagar, fiercely.
"Yah! You're as much a spitfire as ever!"
"More so--to you!" replied the girl. "I hate you now as I did when I left my tribe. Now you have come back, I'll go."
"And who is to look after the shop?"
"That is your business. My task here is ended. To-morrow I'll show you all the accounts---"
"Won't you share the property with me?" asked Goliath, in a wheedling tone.
"No, I shan't! To-morrow you must come with me and see Vark, to---"
"Vark!" echoed Goliath, starting to his feet; "is it that old villain who is to hand me over my tin?"
"Yes; your father employed him, so I thought---"
"Don't think! there ain't no time for thinking! Job! I'd better get my money afore the head of old Vark is stove in!"
"What do you mean?" asked Hagar, bewildered by his tone.
"Mean!" echoed Goliath, pausing at the door. "Well, I was in quod, as I told ye; there I came across Bill Smith---"
"The mandarin customer?"
"Yes; we managed to talk--how it don't matter to you; but I guess, when Bill Smith's out of quod, that Vark is bound for Kingdom-come! And Bill Smith is out!"
"What!" shrieked Hagar, alive at once to the danger which threatened the lawyer. "Out! Escaped?"
"That's the case. He got away last week, and they ain't got him yet. I'd best go and tell Vark to load his pistols. I don't want the old villain choked until I get my property square. You come too, cousin."
"Not just now. To-morrow."
"To-morrow won't do for me!" growled Goliath. "You come to-day, quick!"
"Oh," said Hagar, very disdainfully, "it is no use your taking that tone with me, Goliath. I must get ready my accounts to-night; and tomorrow, if you come here, I'll take them with you to Vark. When everything is set out to your satisfaction, you can enter into your property at once."
"Then you won't come now?"
"No; I have given you my answer."
"You'd best give me a pound or two," said Goliath, crossly. "I'm cleaned out, and I need money to get a bed for the night. You are as obstinate as ever, I see; but if you won't come, you won't. But I'll go and see Vark myself, and tell him about Bill Smith."
After which speech Goliath, with money in his pocket, went off to see the lawyer, cursing Hagar freely for her obstinacy. The man entirely forgot
