by Frank Norris
Ever since he had come into his little patrimony Geary had been making offers to Vandover for his block in the Mission. Geary would offer only eight thousand dollars, but Brunt steadily advised Vandover against listening to such a figure, assuring him that the property was valued at twelve thousand six hundred. Vandover had often wondered at Geary’s persistence in the matter, and had often asked him what he could possibly want of the block. But Geary was very vague in his replies, generally telling Vandover that there was money in the investment if one could and would give the proper attention to pushing it. He told Vandover that he — Vandover — was no business man, which was the lamentable truth, and would much prefer to live upon the interest of his bonds rather than to be continually annoyed by defective plumbing, complaints, and repairs. The truth of the matter was that Geary knew that a certain immense boot and shoe concern was after the same piece of property. The houses themselves were nothing to the boot and shoe people; they wanted the land in order to build their manufactory upon it. A siding of the railroad ran down the alley just back of the property, a fact that hurt the lot for residence purposes, but that was indispensable for the boot and shoe people. Geary knew that the heads of the manufactory were determined to buy the lot, and he was sure that if properly handled by clever brokers they could be induced to offer at least one third more than its appraised valuation. It was a chance for a fine speculation, and it was torture to Geary to think that Vandover, or in fact any one besides himself, was going to profit by it.
The afternoon of the day upon which Hiram Wade had brought suit for twenty-five thousand dollars, while Geary was pottering about his swivel office chair with an oil can trying to find out where it creaked, a brilliant idea had suddenly occurred to him, a stroke of genius, a veritable inspiration. Why could he not make the Wade suit a machine with which to force Vandover into the sale of the property?
His first idea had been to push the case so vigorously that Vandover would surely lose it. But on second thought this course did not seem to promise any satisfactory results. Geary knew very well that though Hiram Wade had sued for twenty-five thousand dollars he could not recover more than five thousand, if as much as that. Geary did not know the exact state of Vandover’s affairs, but he did not think that his chum would sell any property in order to make the payment of damages. It was much more likely that he would raise the five thousand, or whatever it might be, by placing a second mortgage on some of his property. This, however, was presuming that Wade would get judgment for about five thousand dollars. But suppose that Vandover thought that Wade could actually recover twenty-five thousand! Suppose that Geary himself should see Vandover and induce him to believe such a story, and to settle the affair out of court! Vandover was as ignorant of law as he was of business. Geary might frighten him into a sale. Yet this plan seemed very impracticable. In the first place, it would be unprofessional for Geary to have an interview with Vandover under such circumstances, the story was almost too monstrous even for Vandover’s credibility, and besides, Geary would not pay, could not pay twenty-five thousand for the property. This last was a serious tangle. In order to get Vandover to sell, Geary would have to represent the damage suit as involving a larger sum of money than Geary was willing to give for the block, even a far larger sum than that which the boot and shoe manufacturers could be induced to pay for it. It seemed to be a deadlock. Geary began to see that the whole idea was out of the question. Yet the desire of it came back upon him again and again. He dwelt upon it constantly, smelling out the chance for a “deal” somewhere in the tangle with the instinct of the keen man of business. At last he seemed to have straightened it out. The idea of a compromise came into his mind. What if Vandover and Hiram Wade could be made to compromise upon eight thousand dollars! Geary would be willing to pay Vandover eight thousand for the block. That was his original offer. Wade, though he had sued for twenty-five thousand, could easily be made to see that eight thousand was as much as he could reasonably expect, and Geary knew the boot and shoe manufacturers would pay fifteen thousand for the lot, perhaps more.
But in order to carry out the delicate and complicated affair it was absolutely necessary to keep Vandover from seeing a lawyer. Geary knew that any lawyer would fight the proposition of a compromise at eight thousand dollars: five thousand was as much as Wade could possibly get in court, and if judgment for such amount was rendered, Vandover’s counsel would advise him to raise the sum by mortgaging some property instead of selling the block.
Yet as soon as Geary arrived at a solution of the problem, as soon as the “deal” began to seem feasible, he commenced to hesitate. It was not so much that the affair was crooked, that his rôle in it was, to say the least, unprofessional, as it was the fact that Vandover was his old college chum and that, to put the matter into plain words, Geary was swindling his best friend out of a piece of property valued at twelve thousand six hundred dollars, and preventing him from reselling the same piece at a very advanced figure. Again and again he wished that it was some other than Vandover; he told himself that in such case he would put the screw on without the least compunction. All through one night Geary was on the rack torn between his friendship for his chum and his devouring, inordinate ambition to make his way and to make his pile. In the end Vandover was sacrificed — the opportunity was too good — Geary could not resist the chance for a “deal.” Ah, you bet, just think of it, after all, not only would Vandover believe that Geary was doing him a great service, but the office would be delighted with him for winning his first case, they would get a heavy fee from Wade, and he would nearly double his money invested in the block in the Mission. As soon as he had made up his mind to put the “deal” through, he had seen Vandover at his rooms early in the morning and had induced him to promise not to engage any other counsel and in general keep very quiet about the whole business.
The day after, he and Beale, Jr., had an appointment with Hiram Wade, but toward noon Beale, Jr., disappeared, leaving word for Geary that he had gone to court with his father to hear the closing arguments in the great suit against the monopoly, the last struggle in the tremendous legal battle that had embroiled the whole office; Geary was to use his own judgment in the Wade case. Geary laboured with Hiram Wade all that afternoon. The old fellow mistrusted him on account of his youth and his inexperience, was unwilling to arrive at any definite conclusion without the sanction of Geary’s older associate, and for a long time would listen to nothing less than ten thousand dollars, crying out that his gray hairs had been dishonoured, and striking his palm upon his forehead. Nothing could move him. He, also, had his ambitions; it was his dream to own the carpet-cleaning establishment in which he now had but a three-fourths interest. Summer was coming, the time of year when people were going into the country, leaving their carpets to be cleaned in their absence. If he could obtain complete ownership of his business within the month he fancied that he saw an opportunity to make more money than he had done before at any previous season.
“Why, I tell you, Mister Geary,” he exclaimed indignantly, wagging his head, “it would seem like selling my daughter’s honour if we should compromise at any less figure. I am a father. I — I have my feelings, haven’t I?”
“Well, now, it isn’t like that at all, Mr. Wade,” answered Geary, making awkward gestures with both his hands. “It isn’t what we ought to get out of him. Could any sum of money, could millions compensate you for Miss Ida’s death? I guess not. It’s what we can get. If this thing comes into court we won’t get but five thousand out of him; I’ll tell you that right now. He could raise that by a mortgage, easy; but if we compromise we can squeeze him for eight thousand. You see, the fact that we can act directly with him instead of through counsel makes it easier for us. Of course, as I tell you, it isn’t just the legal thing to do, but I’m willing to do it for you because I think you’ve been wronged and outraged.”
Wade struck his hand to his head. “I tell you, he’s brought dishonour upon my gray hairs,” he exclai
med.
“Exactly, of course, I understand how you feel,” replied Geary, “but now about this eight thousand? I tell you what I’ll do.” He had resolved to stake everything upon one last hazard. “See here, Mr. Wade, there’s a difference, of course, between eight thousand dollars and ten thousand, but the use of money is worth something, isn’t it? And money down, cold hard cash, is worth something, isn’t it? Well, now, suppose you got that eight thousand dollars money down within three days?”
Hiram Wade still demurred a little longer for the sake of his own self-respect and his dishonoured hairs, but in the end it was agreed that if the money was paid over to him in full before the end of the following week he would be content and would agree to the compromise. Eight thousand dollars would still be enough to buy out his partner’s interest, and even then he would have a little left over with which to improve a certain steaming apparatus. If the amount was paid in full within a week he could get control of the cleaning-works in time to catch all of the summer trade.
Geary had calculated that this last argument would have its weight; the great difficulty now was to get Vandover to sell at such a low figure and upon such short notice. He almost despaired of his success in this quarter; however, it all depended upon Vandover now.
Early in the forenoon of the next day Geary pounded on the door of Vandover’s sitting-room, pushing it open without waiting for an answer. Vandover was lying in his shirt-sleeves on the corduroy divan under the huge rug of sombre colours that hung against the wall, and he did not get up as Geary came in; in fact, he hardly stirred.
“Hello!” cried Geary, closing the door with his heel. “Didn’t expect to find you up so early. I’ve been up since half-past six; had breakfast at seven, fine cutlet, and then got down to the office at twenty minutes of eight. How’s that for rustling, hey?”
“Yes?” said Vandover, dully.
“But, say,” exclaimed Geary, “what’s all the matter with you? You look all frazzled out, all pale around the wattles. Ah, you’ve been hitting up a pace again. You’re a bird, Van, there’s no use talking! All night racket this trip?”.
“I suppose so,” answered Vandover, never moving.
“But you do look gone-in this morning, sure,” continued Geary, seating himself on the edge of the table and pushing back his hat. “Never saw you looking so bad; you ought to be more careful, Van; there’ll be a smash some time. Ah, you bet a man ought to look out for his health. I walk downtown every morning, and three times a week I take a cold shower as soon as I get up. Ah, I tell you, that braces a fellow up; you ought to try it; it’s better than a dozen cocktails. You keep on getting thin like you have for the past few days and I’ll have to be calling you Skinny Seldom-fed again, like we used to. Now, tell the truth, what time did you get to bed last night? Did you go to bed at all?”
“No,” replied Vandover with a long breath, looking vaguely at the pipe-rack on the opposite wall.
“I thought as much,” answered Geary. “Well, that’s like you.” He paused a moment, and then went on, nervously gesturing with both his hands simultaneously. “Well, I’ve had a long talk with Wade. I tell you, Van, that old boy is as stubborn as a mule. You see, he knows he’s got a case. I couldn’t talk him out of that. I’ll tell you how it is,” continued Geary, preparing to spring another mine; “he’s found a letter Ida wrote you the day before she killed herself.” He paused to watch the effect upon Vandover. Vandover waited for him to go on, but seeing that he did not and that he expected him to say something, nodded his head once and answered:
“I see.”
“Don’t you know, that letter that she wrote to you telling you how it was, how she was fixed?” repeated Geary, puzzled and irritated at Vandover’s indifference.
“I know.”
“Well, he’s got it, anyhow,” pursued Geary, “and of course that tells against you. Well, I had a long talk with him yesterday afternoon and I got him to compromise. Of course, you know in suits like this one a party sues for a great deal more than he expects to get. At first you know he said twenty-five thousand; that figure was decided upon at the first interview he had with us. Of course, he could never get judgment for that much. But he hung out at ten thousand; said it would be selling his daughter if he took any less. Now I knew you couldn’t raise that much on any property you have, especially in these hard times—” Geary paused for the fraction of an instant; he had thrown out the last remark as a feeler, to see what Vandover would say; but his chum said nothing, staring vaguely at the opposite wall, merely making a faint sign to show that he understood, closing his eyes and bending his head. “And so,” continued the other, “I jewed him down, and what do you suppose? Well, sir, from twenty-five thousand I brought him right down to, say, eight thousand. I could see that he had some scheme that he wants to go into right away, and that he wants ready money, right on the nail, you know, to carry it through. Ah, you bet, I was clever enough to see that. I waltzed him right over when I began to speak of ready money, cash down. As soon as he’d squeal I’d spring cold cash on him, money down, and he’s hit gravel like an ostrich. Well,” he went on deliberately after a pause, getting up from the table and standing before Vandover, his hands in his pockets, “well, I think that’s the best I can do for you, Van. It’s a good deal better than I expected, but I’ve done the best I could for you, and I would advise you to see him on the proposition.”
“All right,” said Vandover. “Go ahead.”
Geary was perplexed. “Well, you think that’s a good thing, don’t you? You think I’ve done my best for you? You see it as I do, don’t you?”
Vandover withdrew his eyes from the other wall, glancing under heavy eyelids at Geary, and with a slight movement of his head and shoulders replied:
“Of course.”
“Have you got the money?” asked Geary eagerly; then, irritated at his indiscretion, hastened to interrupt himself. “You see, he hasn’t put his proposition into writing yet, but it’s like this: if you can pay him eight thousand dollars in cash before the end of next week he’ll sign a document to the effect that he is satisfied.”
“I’ve got no money,” said Vandover quietly.
“I was afraid you wouldn’t have,” said Geary, “but you can raise it somewhere. You had better close with the old man as soon as you can, Van, while he’s in the mood for it; you’ll make a clear two thousand by it. You can see that as well as I can. Now, where can you — how is your property fixed? Let’s see! Here’s the statement you made to me the other day,” continued Geary, drawing his shorthand notes from his portfolio. “How about this piece on California Street, the one that you have rented, the homestead, you know?”
“Yes, there’s that,” answered Vandover, changing the position of his head upon his clasped hands.
“But that’s pretty well papered up already,” returned Geary, consulting his notes. “You couldn’t very well raise another mortgage on that.’”
“I’d forgotten,” answered Vandover. “There’s the block in the Mission. He can have that.”
Geary began to tremble with excitement. It looked as though he might be able to make the deal after all. But the next instant he grew suspicious. Vandover’s indifference puzzled him. Might he not have some game of his own? The idea of playing off his cleverness against that of an opponent strung his nerves in an instant; the notion of an impending struggle was almost an inspiration, and his innate desire of getting the better of a competitor, even though it was his closest friend, aroused his wits and sharpened his faculties like a stimulant. He had no hesitancy in sacrificing his chum. It was business now; friendship ceased to be a factor in the affair. Ah, Van was going to be foxy; he’d show him that he could be foxy, too.
“He can have it?” echoed Geary. “You don’t mean to sign it over to him bodily?”
“Oh, I suppose it could be mortgaged,” answered Vandover.
“Yes, that’s the idea,” returned Geary. “You want me to figure that out for you? I can
just as well as not. Well, now, let’s see,” he went on, settling himself at the desk, and figuring upon a sheet of Vandover’s stamped letter-paper. “The banks will never give you more than two thirds of the appraised value; that’s as much as we can expect; that would come to — well, let’s see — that would come to six thousand on that piece; then you could mortgage something else to make up the difference.”
“Wouldn’t it be more than six thousand?” asked Vandover with a little show of interest. “I think that block has been appraised at something over twelve thousand.”