"Oh, but you DON'T know, Mrs. Dunn," cried Caroline, almost in tears. "You don't understand! It's so much worse than you think.
I--I--Oh, why did father do it? How could he be so inconsiderate?""There! there!" purred the friend of the family. "You mustn't, you know. You really mustn't. Who is this man? This uncle? Where does he come from? Why does he force himself upon you in this way?
I didn't know your poor father had a brother.""Neither did we," growled Stephen, savagely. Malcolm laughed again.
"What does it all mean, dear?" begged Mrs. Dunn. "You are in trouble, I'm sure. Don't you think we--Malcolm and I--might be able to help you? We should so love to do it. If you feel that you CAN confide in us; if it isn't a secret--"She paused expectantly, patting the girl's shoulder. But Caroline had heard young Dunn's laugh, and was offended and hurt. Her eyes flashed as she answered.
"It's nothing," she said. "He has come to see us on a matter of business, I believe. I am nervous and--foolish, I suppose. Mr.
Graves will see us soon, and then everything will be arranged.
Thank you for calling, Mrs. Dunn, and for the ride."It was a very plain hint, but Mrs. Dunn did not choose to understand it as such.
"You're sure you hadn't better tell me the whole story, dear?" she urged. "I am old enough, almost, to be your mother, and perhaps my advice might . . . No? Very well. You know best but--You understand that it is something other than mere curiosity which leads me to ask.""Of course, I understand," said the girl hastily. "Thank you very much. Perhaps, by and by, I can tell you everything. But we must see Mr. Graves first. I--oh, DON'T ask me more now, Mrs. Dunn."The widow of so astute a politician as Mike Dunn had been in his day could have scarcely failed to profit by his teachings.
Moreover, she possessed talent of her own. With a final pat and a kiss, she prepared for departure.
"Good-by, then," she said, "or rather, au revoir. We shall look in to-morrow. Come, Malcolm.""I say, Mal!" cried Stephen, rising hurriedly.
"You won't tell anyone about--"
"Steve!" interrupted his sister.
Malcolm, about to utter a languid sarca**, caught his mother's look, and remained silent. Another meaning glance, and his manner changed.
"All right, Steve, old man," he said. "Good-by and good luck.
Caroline, awfully glad we had the spin this afternoon. We must have more. Just what you and Steve need. At your service any time. If there is anything I can do in any way to--er--you understand--call on me, won't you? Ready, Mater?"The pair were shown out by Edwards. On the way home in the car Mrs. Corcoran Dunn lectured her son severely.
"Have you no common sense?" she demanded. "Couldn't you see that the girl would have told me everything if you hadn't laughed, like an idiot?"The young man laughed again.
"By Jove!" he exclaimed, "it was enough to make a wooden Indian laugh. The old jay with the barnacles telling us about the advantages of a sailor's life. And Steve's face! Ho! ho!"His mother snorted disgust. "If you had brains," she declared, "you would have understood what he meant by saying that the sea was the place to learn what to unlearn. He was hitting at you. Was it necessary to insult him the first time you and he exchanged a word?""Insult him? HIM? Ha, ha! Why, Mater, what's the matter with you? Do you imagine that a hayseed like that would recognize an insult without an introduction? And, besides, what difference does it make? You don't intend putting him on your calling list, do you?""I intend cultivating him for the present."
"CULTIVATING him?"
"Yes--for the present. He is Rodgers Warren's brother. That lawyer, Graves, traveled miles to see him. What does that mean?
That, in some important way, he is connected with the estate and those two children. If the estate is worth anything, and we have reason to believe it is, you and I must know it. If it isn't, it is even more important that we should know, before we waste more time. If Caroline is an heiress, if she inherits even a moderate fortune--"She shrugged her shoulders by way of finish to the sentence.
Malcolm whistled.
"But to think of that old Down-Easter being related to the Warren family!" he mused. "It seems impossible.""Nothing is impossible," observed his mother. Then, with a shudder, "You never met your father's relatives. I have."When Captain Elisha emerged from his room, after a wash and a change of linen, he found the library untenanted. He strolled about, his hands behind him, inspecting the pictures with critical interest. Caroline, dressed for dinner, found him thus engaged.
He turned at the sound of her step.
"Why, hello!" he cried, with hearty enthusiasm. "All rigged up for inspection, ain't you?""Inspection?"
"Oh, that's just sailor's lingo. Means you've got your Sunday uniform on, that's all. My! my! how nice you look! But ain't black pretty old for such a young girl?""I am in mourning," replied his niece, coldly.
"There! there! of course you are. Tut! tut! How could I forget it. You see, I've been so many years feelin' as if I didn't have a brother that I've sort of got used to his bein' gone.""I have not." Her eyes filled as she said it. The captain was greatly moved.
"I'm a blunderin' old fool, my dear," he said. "I beg your pardon.
Do try to forgive me, won't you? And, perhaps--perhaps I can make up your loss to you, just a little mite. I'd like to. I'll try to, if--"He laid a hand on her shoulder. She avoided him and, moving away, seated herself in a chair at the opposite side of the desk. The avoidance was so obvious as to be almost brutal. Captain Elisha looked very grave for an instant. Then he changed the subject.