‘I cannot tell you who they were, but – but they paid me some money to do it. Will you take the money and give it to any charity you like!’
She fumbled in her bag. He caught her hand.
‘That’s fine of you,’ he said, ‘but you keep it. It’ll make up for what you’ve had to suffer today.’
‘I’m glad I’ve had to suffer,’ she said. ‘It has taught me a lesson I’ll never forget. Would you mind asking Captain Shannon and his sister if they will try to forgive me?’
‘Rather!’ he said enthusiastically. ‘And I guess they will.’ He shook hands with the girl.
The train began to move, and at that moment Hudson came hurriedly along, searching in the carriages as he came. He did not notice them until he was almost upon them when he looked dumbfounded and stopped in his tracks, his face going a sickly white. Miss Gregson gasped, but said nothing. Miles had watched Hudson’s advent with a grim smile.
‘I won’t forget your messages, Miss Olive,’ he murmured. ‘Goodbye!’
Then turning to Hudson, he took him by the arm.
‘Say, this is a surprise,’ he said. ‘Have you come to see anybody off?’
Hudson murmured something inarticulate, and the American’s smile became grimmer than ever. He glanced round in the direction of the receding train once more, and waved his topee to Miss Gregson, who was leaning out of her window, then, looking the civil servant straight in the face:
‘Gee!’ he remarked. ‘You look mighty queer, Hudson. Come right along and split a bottle of beer with me!’
Hudson had received a very bad shock, and he permitted Miles to lead him towards the refreshment rooms, almost as though he were bereft of the power either to resist or acquiesce. Once seated at a table, however, he made a big effort to pull himself together; he even succeeded in producing an imitation of a smile.
‘I hardly realised where you were bringing me!’ he said. ‘I suddenly became faint! Very stupid of me, of course, but I’m not usually afflicted in that way.’
‘You looked pretty seedy,’ said Miles. ‘Will you have a beer, or do you prefer something less plebian?’
‘Beer will suit me admirably, thanks!’
The American turned and gave an order to a waiter. While he was thus engaged, the other studied him surreptitiously, wondering, with a great unease, how he had been present to see Olive Gregson off, and if he had learnt anything from her of harm to himself and his fellow conspirators. Miles turned suddenly and noticed the anxious look in Hudson’s eyes. He guessed what was passing in his mind, and looked forward to an amusing ten minutes.
‘Say,’ he said, ‘you look better already!’
‘Oh, I’m all right now!’ replied Hudson shortly.
‘Of course, I’m a bit of a fool sometimes,’ remarked Miles apologetically, ‘but when you turned up and suddenly looked so bad, I thought for a moment that you were upset at seeing me, or Miss Gregson!’
Hudson laughed unsteadily.
‘How absurd!’ he said. ‘Why should I be?’
‘Darned if I know,’ smiled the American, ‘but I often get fool notions in my head. I daresay it’s because I’m not over supplied with grey matter.’
‘As a matter of fact I came to see a friend off, and was looking for him, when that fainting attack came over me!’
The beer arrived and both took a long drink before saying any more. Hudson seemed to regain his faculties entirely; the colour returned to his face, and he smiled across the table at his companion.
‘I say,’ he said, ‘that was a pretty beastly affair last night at the Club, wasn’t it?’
‘Damnable!’ agreed Miles.
‘I was astounded! I can’t say I ever liked Shannon, but I certainly didn’t think he was that sort.’
‘I guess not!’ murmured Miles. This was sheer enjoyment to him, and he took another drink in appreciation of what was to come.
‘What puzzles me,’ went on Hudson, ‘is to find you, his friend, here at the station seeing Miss Gregson off, and apparently on the best of terms with her.’
‘Well, there’s nothing extraordinary in that. Miss Olive and I have a great understanding of each other.’
‘But why is she leaving Lahore? I thought she had come to demand reparation from Shannon for the wrong he had done her?’
‘And you think it looks mighty queer her beating it so suddenly?’
‘Well, it is, isn’t it? And especially with you to see her go!’ He leant forward. ‘Has Shannon bought her off?’ he asked.
A gleam of anger came into Miles’ eyes, but was gone immediately.
‘Shannon does not do things like that,’ he said quietly. ‘Besides there was no need!’
‘What do you mean?’
‘She and I had a heart-to-heart talk this morning at her hotel and—’
‘Her hotel!’ exclaimed Hudson in sudden consternation. ‘How did you know where to find her?’
Miles looked at him with an expression of amiable surprise.
‘Why,’ he answered gently, ‘she told us last night that she was going to the Royal Hotel.’
‘But she wasn’t there!’ said the surprised Hudson.
‘How do you know?’ snapped the American, and the other realised what a bad mistake he had made.
‘I – I—’ he stammered in confusion. ‘I can’t for the moment recall how I heard, but—’
He stopped, utterly at a loss what to say. Apparently Miles was not interested for he went on:
‘Shannon and I had a talk last night, and I told him to leave everything to me. She wasn’t staying at the Royal as you say, but I found her at the Northern India getting ready to beat it. When I had talked to her for half an hour like a granddad, she saw the error of her ways. We went right along to the Club; there was an emergency meeting on, and I’m darned if she didn’t butt in, and tell them the truth. My! They were astonished!’
Hudson jumped to his feet, and his face was as pale as death.
‘What!’ he almost shouted.
‘Don’t get excited! It’s nice of you to be pleased like this – I was mighty glad myself.’
The civil servant sank back into his chair.
‘What did she say?’ he gasped.
‘She told the whole darn story!’
His companion looked a pitiable sight, but Miles did not appear to notice his condition.
‘Do you mean to say,’ gasped Hudson, ‘that she did that of her own accord?’
‘Sure! She turned out to be quite a fine little girl in the end. I brought her to the station, and, as you know, saw her off. Say, you won’t guess what she wanted to do!’
‘What?’ asked the abject-looking specimen of humanity before him, licking his dry lips.
‘There was someone behind her in this plot – Why, man, I guess you look almighty queer again! Have some brandy!’
‘No, no! Go on!’
‘Well, as I was saying, there was someone behind her who had given her a whole heap of money, and she wanted me to take it and give it away to charity! Now wasn’t that mighty fine of her?’
‘Who – who was behind her?’
Miles purposely took a long drink, watching the other over the rim of his glass. Then he leant back in his chair with a sigh of regret.
‘I couldn’t get her to tell me that!’ he said.
An expression of the utmost relief replaced the terror-stricken look on Hudson’s face. He sank back.
‘I think I will have that brandy,’ he murmured. ‘I do feel pretty bad!’
The brandy was forthcoming, and he gulped down the neat spirit without a pause. Then he tried to smile.
‘Do you feel better?’ inquired Miles, who looked the picture of anxiety.
‘Much, thanks! I – I must be off, if you’ll excuse me!’ He rose unsteadily to his feet.
‘I had better come with you in case you’re taken bad again,’ said the American.
‘Not at all! I’m quite all right now. Can’t understand what h
as happened to me this morning!’
Miles thought he could, but did not say so.
‘I’ll tell Shannon how pleased you are that the scandal has been cleared from his name,’ he said pleasantly.
‘No; please don’t! I’d much rather you didn’t,’ said Hudson earnestly. ‘Shannon hasn’t much regard for me. He – he might resent it. Goodbye!’
He made his way out of the refreshment rooms, and as soon as he had gone Miles lay back in his chair and laughed so loudly that the waiters in the vicinity thought he had gone mad. Presently he called for his bill and, having paid it, wandered off to the entrance of the great bare station, where Cousins was still waiting for him with the car. The little man wore a look of pain on his usually cheerful face.
‘What on earth have you been doing all this time?’ he asked resentfully.
‘Jerry, I’ve been having a dandy time,’ chuckled Miles.
‘Stop grinning like a Cheshire cat, and tell me the joke!’
‘No time now, my son; I’m beginning to feel sadly in want of some eats!’
‘Look here—’ began Cousins.
The other slapped him on the back.
‘Home, James!’ he said.
The ideal valet climbed into the seat beside the driver with a frown on his face, which promised a searching inquiry later.
‘Quantum mutatus ab illo!’ he muttered.
‘Oh, say!’ said Miles suddenly. ‘I left a tonga at the Northern India – I forgot all about it. Better drive there first. I owe the driver a pony!’
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
His Excellency the Governor
When eventually Miles and Cousins reached the bungalow, they found Joan eagerly awaiting them on the veranda.
‘Well?’ she asked, and at the sight of Miles’ beaming face the look of trouble began to leave her own.
‘Has Hugh come back yet?’ he inquired.
‘Yes; he came home ages ago. They know everything at the College and he was asked to resign, but he refused. He is in an awful state about it!’
‘Well, Miss Joan, just you go right along to him and tell him that Olive Gregson has been before an emergency committee at the Club, and confessed everything; that I have seen her leave for Bangalore, and that she has asked me to request you and your brother to forgive her.’
‘Oh, Oscar!’ she cried, her eyes shining with such happiness that Cousins felt an uncomfortable lump in his throat. ‘Is this really true?’
‘Sure! And not only that, but the chairman of the Club has asked me to convey his sympathies, and those of the other committeemen to Hugh, and to assure him that everything will be done to clear the scandal from his name.’
‘Oscar, you dear!’ she cried, and ran off to tell Hugh the good news.
Cousins looked at Miles in perplexity.
‘Good heavens!’ he exclaimed. ‘Can it be possible that a lean, ugly, grinning specimen of what a man might come to, like you, has found his way into that dear girl’s heart!’
‘Gee! If only I could think so!’ sighed the American.
‘Do you mean to say—?’
‘I just mean to say that I would sell my soul for Joan!’
Cousins held out his hand.
‘I wish you luck, old chap. You make sentiment rise in my breast, and I can almost feel the weight of years rolling away from my shoulders. I also love Miss Shannon!’
‘You what?’ demanded Miles.
‘As a father, of course,’ said the little man hastily; ‘though I must confess that even I, in spite of all the cold, calculating reason that inhabits my cranium, am capable of feeling la grande passion. “A warmth within the breast would melt The freezing reason’s colder part, And, like a man in wrath the heart, Stood up and answered ‘I have felt’.”’
Hugh was sitting moodily on the bed, when Joan burst into his room, her face all aglow with delight. She repeated what Miles had told her without stopping for breath. He started up and caught her by the shoulders.
‘What is this?’ he demanded.
She told him all over again, and then threw her arms round him and kissed him.
‘Oh, Hugh!’ she said. ‘I am so happy!’
He was a different man as he returned her caress.
‘By Jove!’ he said. ‘How splendid!’
‘And it’s all due to Oscar – every bit of it!’ she cried.
He looked at her and smiled.
‘Oscar!’ he remarked. ‘Since when—?’
She blushed and hurried from the room.
For a few minutes he stood looking after her, and then he followed. He found Miles explaining to Cousins and Joan how careful one should be in mixing a cocktail and, without regard for cocktails or the interested listeners, he clasped the American’s hand and interrupted him.
‘Miles!’ he said, with deep gratitude in his voice, ‘I’m a rotten hand at expressing my feelings, but—’
‘Shucks!’ interrupted the other. ‘Don’t say anything more about it! Besides, Jerry here had as much to do with it as I!’
Cousins got behind a table.
‘If you do the gratitude stunt to me,’ he threatened, ‘I’ll burst into tears! Go away! Anyhow the man’s a confirmed liar – I had nothing to do with it, except act the ideal valet as usual. And a pretty time I’ve had,’ he complained.
Tiffin was late that day. The bearers and cook became plaintive over the fact that the viands were getting cold. But no one heeded them. Miles told the whole story of the morning’s doings right up to the appearance and subsequent torture of Hudson. The laughter was unrestrained as the American described how he had baited the civil servant, and Cousins magnanimously forgave the narrator for the long wait he had had while the process was going on.
A happy party sat down to luncheon, the only jarring note being the necessary absence of Cousins from the table. The cold food tasted delicious to them all, and they declared that they had seldom enjoyed a meal more. They discussed the change in Olive Gregson at great length, and Joan decided that, if she could only discover her address, she would write and tell her that everything was forgiven and forgotten, and thank her for what she had done.
‘Say,’ put in the American, ‘I can make a good effort at remembering the address. She told me when I first met her on the way from Bombay to Port Said!’
‘Splendid!’ cried Joan and Hugh together.
A few minutes before six that evening Shannon drove away from the house and made a leisurely tour of the Lawrence Gardens, all the time watching through the mirror attached to the windscreen to see if he were followed. He soon decided that there was no doubt about it as, a hundred yards or so behind, a large touring car glided along in his wake, slowing down and accelerating when he did. He smiled to himself.
‘Clumsy!’ he murmured.
Entering on to a circular road, running round the cricket ground, he suddenly increased his speed, but as soon as he got among a grove of trees which hid him from sight, he pulled up dead, and waited at the side of the road with his engine running. Almost immediately the big car tore round the corner; there was a jarring of brakes, and it stopped almost alongside. Hugh grinned at the success of his manoeuvre, and looked curiously at the two occupants of the other car, both of them very uninteresting-looking Indians wearing bright coloured turbans. They were obviously surprised, and consulted hastily together then one got out and lifting up the bonnet proceeded to make a great show of examining the engine. Hugh puffed placidly at his pipe, and watched the performance.
‘Something gone wrong?’ he inquired presently.
The driver looked at him uneasily, but the other man glanced round.
‘It missing one cylinder, sahib!’ he said.
Hugh got out of his car and joined him.
‘Which one?’ he asked.
‘I think this one!’ replied the other.
‘Better take out the sparking plug and have a look at it,’ said Hugh casually.
The man shook his head.
�
��It not matter, sahib,’ he remarked uneasily.
‘Well, of course, that’s up to you, but I should. By the way,’ he added, ‘you’re right in the way here. If another car comes round the corner there’ll be an accident!’
He helped the other man to push the vehicle in front of his own.
‘Now, let us have a look at that plug!’ he said in an authoritative voice.
Apparently the fact that their car was directly in front of his made the two Indians feel that he could not very well get away from them, for they produced a spanner and went through the performance of taking off the sparking plug and examining it. Hugh took it into his own hand and looked at it critically.
‘There doesn’t seem to be much wrong with it,’ he said. ‘Try the next!’
That also was unscrewed, and Hugh held them both.
‘This one is perfectly all right!’ he said. ‘We had better look at the lot. Well, it’s no use letting my engine go on wasting petrol. I’ll shut it off, and assist you to put this matter right!’
He took off his coat as he spoke to lend colour to the remark that he would help, then strolling back to his car, the two plugs still in his hand, he threw the coat in, and suddenly jumped in himself. He put the car into gear, and swerved by the other. There was a shout of fury from the two men, and Hugh smiled.
‘Catch!’ he cried, and threw the sparking plugs towards them.
In a moment he had swung round the bend and out of sight, and a few minutes later entered the main gates of Government House.
‘What absolute fools!’ he laughed, as he drove up the beautiful avenue that led to the Governor’s residence.
He found the Deputy Commissioner awaiting him on the terrace in front of the house. Hugh rather expected a cold welcome, considering that Rainer had been present at the incident of the night before. Instead he received a very warm greeting from the alert, sharp-featured man upon whose tact and ability the peace of Lahore and district depended to such a great extent.
‘Sorry I’m late, sir,’ said Hugh, ‘but as I expected, I was followed, and it took me some time to trick my shadowers.’
Rainer looked interested.
‘Of course I’m eager to hear all about it,’ said he, ‘but His Excellency will be waiting.’
Devil's Cocktail (Wallace of the Secret Service Series) Page 20