The Crimson Blind

by Fred M. White

  CHAPTER XLIX

  A CHEVALIER OF FORTUNE

  Littimer put up his glass and gazed with apparent vacancy in thedirection of the window. He saw a tall man with a grey beard and hair; aman most immaculately dressed and of distinctly distinguished appearance.Littimer was fain to admit that he would have taken him for a gentlemanunder any circumstances. In manner, style, and speech he left nothing tobe desired.

  "That chap has a fortune in his face and accent," Littimer said. "'Pon myword, he is a chance acquaintance that one would ask to dinner withoutthe slightest hesitation. And the girl--"

  "Is his daughter," Chris said. "The likeness is very strong."

  "It is," Littimer admitted. "A singularly pretty, refined girl, withquite the grand air. It is an air that mere education seldom gives; butit seems to have done so in yonder case. And how fond they seem to be ofone another! Depend upon it, Chris, whatever that man may be his daughterknows nothing of it. And yet you tell me that the police--"

  "Well, never mind the police, now. We can get Mr. Steel to tell Marleyall about 'John Smith' if we can't contrive to force his hand without.But with that pretty girl before my eyes I shouldn't like to do anythingharsh. Up till now I have always pictured the typical educated scoundrelas a man who was utterly devoid of feelings of any kind."

  Dinner proceeded quietly enough, Chris having eyes for hardly anythingelse beyond the couple in the window. She rose presently, with a littlegasp, and hastily lifted a tankard of iced water from the table. The girlopposite her had turned pale and her dark head had drooped forward.

  "I hope it is not serious," said Chris. "Drink a little of this;it is iced."

  "And they told me they had no ice in the house," the man Rawlinsmuttered. "A little of this, Grace. It is one of her old fainting fits.Ah, that is better."

  The man Rawlins spoke with the tenderest solicitude. The look of positiverelief on his face as his daughter smiled at him told of a deep devotionand affection for the girl. Chris, looking on, was wondering vaguelywhether or not she had made a mistake.

  "Lord Littimer obtained our ice," she said. "Pray keep this. Oh, yes,that is Lord Littimer over there. I am his secretary."

  Littimer strolled across himself and murmured his condolences. A littletime later and the four of them were outside in the verandah taking icestogether. Rawlins might have been, and no doubt was, a finishedscoundrel, but there was no question as to his fascinating manner and hisbrilliant qualities as a conversationalist. A man of nerve too, and fullof resources. All the same, Littimer was asking himself and wondering whothe man really was. By birth he must have been born a gentleman, Littimerdid not doubt for a moment.

  But there was one soft spot in the man, and that was his love for hisdaughter. For her sake he had been travelling all over the world foryears; for years he had despaired of seeing her live to womanhood. Butshe was gradually growing better; indeed, if she had not walked so farto-day nothing would have happened. All the time that Rawlins was talkinghis eyes were resting tenderly on his daughter. The hard, steely lookseemed to have gone out of them altogether.

  Altogether a charming and many-sided rascal, Littimer thought. Hewas fond, as he called it, of collecting types of humanity, and herewas a new and fascinating specimen. The two men talked together tilllong after dark, and Rawlins never betrayed himself. He might havebeen an Ambassador or Cabinet Minister unbending after a long periodof heavy labour.

  Meanwhile Chris had drawn Grace Rawlins apart from the others. The girlwas quiet and self-contained, but evidently a lady. She seemed to havebut few enthusiasms, but one of them was for her father. He was the mostwonderful man in the world, the most kind and considerate. He was veryrich; indeed, it was a good thing, or she would never have been able tosee so much of the world. He had given up nearly the whole of his life toher, and now she was nearly as strong as other girls. Chris listened in adazed, confused kind of way. She had not expected anything like this; andwhen had Rawlins found time for those brilliant predatory schemes thatshe had heard of?

  "Well, what do you think of them?" Littimer asked, when at length he andChris were alone. "I suppose it isn't possible that you and I have madea mistake?"

  "I'm afraid not," Chris said, half sadly. "But what a strange casealtogether."

  "Passing strange. I'll go bail that that man is born and bred agentleman; and, what is more, he is no more of an American than I am. Ikept on forgetting from time to time what he was and taking him for oneof our own class. And, finally, I capped my folly by asking him to bringhis daughter for a drive to-morrow and a lunch on the Gapstone. What doyou think of that?"

  "Splendid," Chris said, coolly. "Nothing could be better. You will begood enough to exercise all your powers of fascination on Miss Rawlinsto-morrow, and leave her father to me. I thought of a little plan tonightwhich I believe will succeed admirably. At first I expected to have tocarry matters with a high hand, but now I am going to get Mr. Rawlinsthrough his daughter. I shall know all I want to by to-morrow night."

  Littimer smiled at this sanguine expectation.

  "I sincerely hope you will," he said, drily. "But I doubt it very muchindeed. You have one of the cleverest men in Europe to deal with.Good-night."

  But Chris was in no way cast down. She had carefully planned out herline of action, and the more she thought over it the more sure ofsuccess she felt. A few hours more and--but she didn't care to dwell tooclosely on that.

  It was after luncheon that Chris's opportunity came. Lord Littimer andGrace Rawlins had gone off to inspect something especially beautiful inthe way of a waterfall, leaving Chris and Rawlins alone. The latter wastalking brilliantly over his cigarette.

  "Is Lord Littimer any relation of yours?" he asked.

  "Well, yes," Chris admitted. "I hope he will be a nearer relationbefore long."

  "Oh, you mean to say--may I venture to congratulate--"

  "It isn't quite that," Chris laughed, with a little rising in colour. "Iam not thinking of Lord Littimer, but of his son.... Yes, I see you raiseyour eyebrows--probably you are aware of the story, as most people are.And you are wondering why I am on such friendly terms with Lord Littimerunder the circumstances. And I am wondering why you should call yourselfJohn Smith."

  The listener coolly flicked the ash from his cigarette. His face waslike a mask.

  "John Smith is a good name," he said. "Can you suggest a better?"

  "If you ask me to do so I can. I should call myself John Rawlins."

  There was just the ghost of a smile on Rawlins's lips.

  "There is a man of that name," he said, slowly, "who attainedconsiderable notoriety in the States. People said that he was the_derniere cri_ of refined rascality. He was supposed to be withoutfeeling of any kind; his villainies were the theme of admiration amongstfinancial magnates. There were brokers who piously thanked Providencebecause Rawlins had never thought of going on the Stock Exchange, wherehe could have robbed and plundered with impunity. And this Rawlins alwaysbaffles the police. If he baffles them a little longer they won't be ableto touch him at all. At present, despite his outward show, he has hardlya dollar to call his own. But he is on to a great _coup_ now, and,strange to say, an honest one. Do you know the man, Miss Lee?"

  Chris met the speaker's eyes firmly.

  "I met him last night for the first time," she said.

  "In that case you can hardly be said to know him," Rawlins murmured. "Ifyou drive him into a corner he will do desperate things. If you triedthat game on with him you would regret it for the rest of your life. Goodheavens, you are like a child playing about amidst a lot of unguardedmachinery. Why do you do it?"

  "That I will tell you presently. Mr. Rawlins, you have a daughter."

  The hard look died out of the listener's eyes.

  "Whom I love better than my life," he said. "There are two JohnRawlins's--the one you know; and, well, the other one. I should be sorryto show you the other one."

  "For the sake of your daughter I don't want to see the other on
e."

  "Then why do you pit yourself against me like this?"

  "I don't think you are displaying your usual lucidity," Chris said,coolly. Her heart was beating fast, but she did not show it. "Justreflect for a moment. I have found you out. I know pretty well what youare. I need not have told you anything of this. I need have done no morethan gone to the police and told them where to find you. But I don't wantto do that; I hate to do it after what I saw last night. You have yourchild, and she loves you. Could I unmask you before her eyes?"

  "You would kill her," Rawlins said, a little unsteadily; "and you wouldkill me, I verily believe. That child is all the world to me. I committedmy first theft so that she could have the change the doctors declared tobe absolutely necessary. I intended to repay the money--the old, oldstory. And I was found out by my employers and discharged. Thankgoodness, my wife was dead. Since then I have preyed on society.... But Ineed not go into that sordid story. You are not going to betray me?"

  "I said before that I should do nothing of the kind."

  "Then why do you let me know that you have discovered my identity?"

  "Because I want you to help me. I fancy you respect my sex, Mr. Rawlins?"

  "Call me Smith, please. I have always respected your sex. All thekindness and sympathy of my life have been for women. And I can lay myhand on my heart and declare that I never yet wronged one of them inthought or deed. The man who is cruel to women is no man."

  "And yet your friend Reginald Henson is that sort."

  Rawlins smiled again. He began to understand a little of what was passingin Chris's mind.

  "Would you mind going a little more into details?" he suggested. "SoHenson is that sort. Well, I didn't know, or he had never had myassistance in his little scheme. Oh, of course, I have known him foryears as a scoundrel. So he oppresses women."

  "He has done so for a long time: he is blighting my life and the life ofmy sister and another. And it seems to me that I have that rascal undermy thumb at last. You cannot save him--you can do no more than placeobstacles in my way; but even those I should overcome. And you admit thatI am likely to be dangerous to you."

  "You can kill my daughter. I am in your power to that extent."

  "As if I should," Chris said. "It is only Reginald Henson whom I want tostrike. I want you to answer a few questions; to tell me why you went toWalen's and induced them to procure a certain cigar-case for you, and whyyou subsequently went to Lockhart's at Brighton and bought a preciselysimilar one."

  Rawlins looked in surprise at the speaker. A tinge of admiration was onhis face. There was a keenness and audacity after his own heart.

  "Go on," he said, slowly. "Tell me everything openly and freely, andwhen you have done so I will give you all the information that lies inmy power."