CHAPTER VII.
That same evening, when dear "Idols" was gone, and I felt trebly alone,Mrs. Shelfer came to say that her uncle John was there, and would beglad to see me. Though he had been several times to ask how I was, hehad not seen me since the first day of my blindness.
After expressing his joy and surprise at my recovery, he assured me thatI must thank neither myself nor the doctor, but my luck in not havingtouched the liquid until its strength was nearly expended.
"Have you any news for me?" I asked abruptly. As my strength returned,the sense of my wrong grew hotter.
"Yes; and I fear you will think it bad news. You will lose my help forawhile in your pursuit."
"How so? You talk of my luck; I am always unlucky."
"Because I am ordered abroad on a matter too nice and difficult for anyof my colleagues. To-morrow I leave England."
"How long shall you be away?"
"I cannot tell. Perhaps one year; perhaps two. Perhaps I may neverreturn. Over and above the danger, I am not so young as I was."
I felt dismayed, and stricken down. Was I never to have a chance? Allpowers of earth and heaven and hell seemed to combine against me. Thencame a gleam of hope, obscured immediately by the remembrance of hiswords.
"Are you going to Italy?"
"No. To Australia."
Thereupon all hope vanished, and for a time I could not say a word. Atlast I said--
"Inspector Cutting, the least thing you can do before you go, and yourabsolute duty now, is to tell me every single thing you found out, inthe course of your recent search. Something you must have learned, oryou would not have done what you did. All along I have felt that youwere hiding something from me. Now you can have no motive. Now I amyour successor in the secret; I, and no one else. To no other will Icommit the case. How much I have suffered from your secresy, none butmyself can know. Henceforth I will have no help. Three months you havebeen on the track, and I almost believe that you have discoverednothing."
I spoke so, partly through passion, partly in hope to taunt him intodisclosure. His chief weakness, as I knew well, was pride in his ownsagacity.
"You shall suffer no more. I had good reasons for hiding it, one ofthem your own hastiness. Now I will tell you all I know. In fact, asyou well said, it has become my duty to do so, unless you will authoriseme to appoint a successor before I go."
"Certainly not. My confidence in you cannot be transferred to astranger."
"One chance more. Let me report the matter officially. It is possiblethat my superiors may think it more important than my new mission, whichis to recover a large amount of property."
"No. I will not allow it. I have devoted myself to one object. Ialone can effect it. It shall not pass to others. I feel once morethat it is my destiny to unravel this black mystery; myself, by my owncourage. In asking your aid I was thwarting my destiny. Since then Ihave had nothing but accidents. There is a proverb in some language,'Who crosses destiny shall have accident.'"
"Miss Valence, I could never have dreamed that you were sosuperstitious."
"Now tell me all you have done, all you have discovered, and your ownconclusion from it."
He told me all in a very few words, and his conclusion was mine. To anyother except myself, the grounds on which he had based it, would haveseemed insufficient. I took good care to secure every possible means offollowing up the frail clue. Ere he wished me good-bye, he offered onelast suggestion. "If, during my absence, Miss Valence, you press yourevidence far enough to require the strong hand, or if before you havedone so you require a man's assistance, apply at once to my son--you canalways find him through Patty Shelfer. He is only a serjeant as yet,and not in the detective force; but he has qualities, that young manhas, he has got all my abilities, and more! Ah, he will be at the topof the tree when I am in my grave, please God."
His shrewd eyes softened as he spoke, and I liked him ten times as wellfor this little flaw in his sheathing. Of course he knew that I couldnot entrust myself to a young man, as I could to him. When he was gone,with many good wishes on both sides, and a little keepsake from me, Ifelt that I had lost an intelligent, honest, and true friend.
Clara Vaughan, Volume 2 (of 3) Page 9