Elster's Folly by Mrs. Henry Wood (most important books to read TXT) 📖
- Author: Mrs. Henry Wood
Book online «Elster's Folly by Mrs. Henry Wood (most important books to read TXT) 📖». Author Mrs. Henry Wood
Been Something Worse Than Accident, Not A Soul In The Place Has Dreamt Of
Such A Thing Except Me."
"Except You! What Do You Mean?"
Pike Leaned More Over The Hurdles, So As To Bring His Disreputable Face
Closer To Mr. Gum, Who Slightly Recoiled As He Caught The Low Whisper.
"I Don't Think The Death Was Accidental. I Believe His Lordship Was Just
Put Out Of The Way Quietly."
"Heaven Forbid!" Exclaimed The Shocked Clerk. "By Whom? By You?" He
Added, In His Bewilderment.
"No," Returned The Man. "If I'd Done It, I Shouldn't Talk About It."
"What Do You Mean?" Cried Mr. Gum.
"I Mean That I Have My Suspicions; And Good Suspicions They Are. Many A
Man Has Been Hung On Less. I Am Not Going To Tell Them; Perhaps Not Ever.
I Shall Wait And Keep My Eyes Open, And Bring Them, If I Can, To
Certainties. Time Enough To Talk Then, Or Keep Silent, As Circumstances
May Dictate."
"And You Tell Me You Were Not Near The Place At The Time Of The
Accident?"
"_I_ Wasn't," Replied Mr. Pike, With Emphasis.
"Who Was?"
"That's My Secret. And As I've A Little Matter Of Business On Hand
To-Night, I Don't Care To Be Further Delayed, If It's All The Same To
You, Neighbour. And Instead Of Your Accusing Me Of Prowling About The
Mill Again, Perhaps You'll Just Give A Thought Occasionally To What I
Have Now Said, Keeping It To Yourself. I'm Not Afraid Of Your Spreading
It In Calne; For It Might Bring A Hornets' Nest About Your Head, And
About Some Other Heads That You Wouldn't Like To Injure."
With The Last Words Mr. Pike Crossed The Hurdles And Went Off In The
Direction Of Hartledon. It Was A Light Night, And The Clerk Stood And
Stared After Him. To Say That Jabez Gum In His Astonishment Was Uncertain
Whether He Stood On His Head Or His Heels, Would Be Saying Little; And
How Much Of These Assertions He Might Believe, And What Mischief Mr. Pike
Might Be Going After To-Night, He Knew Not. Drawing A Long Sigh, Which
Did Not Sound Very Much Like A Sigh Of Relief, He At Length Turned Off To
Dr. Ashton's, And The Man Disappeared.
We Must Follow Pike. He Went Stealthily Up The Road Past Hartledon,
Keeping In The Shade Of The Hedge, And Shrinking Into It When He Saw Any
One Coming. Striking Off When He Neared The Mill, He Approached It
Cautiously, And Halted Amidst Some Trees, Whence He Had A View Of The
Mill-Door.
He Was Waiting For The Boy, David Ripper. Fully Convinced By The Lad's
Manner At The Inquest That He Had Not Told All He Knew, But Was Keeping
Something Back In Fear, Mr. Pike, For Reasons Of His Own, Resolved To
Come At It If He Could. He Knew That The Boy Would Be At Work Later Than
Usual That Night, Having Been Hindered In The Afternoon.
Imagine Yourself Standing With Your Back To The River, Reader, And Take A
View Of The Premises As They Face You. The Cottage Is A Square Building,
And Has Four Good Rooms On The Ground Floor. The Miller's Thrifty Wife
Generally Locked All These Rooms Up If She Went Out, And Carried The Keys
Away In Her Pocket. The Parlour Window Was An Ordinary Sash-Window, With
Outside Shutters; The Kitchen Window A Small Casement, Protected By A
Fixed Net-Work Of Strong Wire. No One Could Get In Or Out, Even When The
Casement Was Open, Without Tearing This Wire Away, Which Would Not Be A
Difficult Matter To Accomplish. On The Left Of The Cottage, But To Your
Right As You Face It, Stands The Mill, To Which You Ascend By Steps. It
Communicates Inside With The Upper Floor Of The Cottage, Which Is Used
As A Store-Room For Corn; And From This Store-Room A Flight Of Stairs
Descends To The Kitchen Below. Another Flight Of Stairs From This
Store-Room Communicated With The Open Passage Leading From The Back-Door
To The Stable. This Is All That Need Be Said: And You May Think It
Superfluous To Have Described It At All: But It Is Not So.
The Boy Ripper At Length Came Forth. With A Shuddering Avoidance Of The
Water He Came Tearing Along As One Running From A Ghost, And Was Darting
Past The Trees, When He Found Himself Detained By An Arm Of Great
Strength. Mr. Pike Clapped His Other Hand Upon The Boy's Mouth, Stifling
A Howl Of Terror.
"Do You See This, Rip?" Cried He.
Rip Did See It. It Was A Pistol Held Rather Inconveniently Close To The
Boy's Breast. Rip Dearly Loved His Life; But It Nearly Went Out Of Him
Then With Fear.
"Now," Said Pike, "I've Come Up To Know About This Business Of Lord
Hartledon's, And I Will Know It, Or Leave You As Dead As He Is. And I'll
Have You Took Up For Murder, Into The Bargain," He Rather Illogically
Continued, "As An Accessory To The Fact."
David Ripper Was In A State Of Horror; All Idea Of Concealment Gone Out
Of Him. "I Couldn't Help It," He Gasped. "I Couldn't Get Out To Him; I
Was Locked Up In The Mill. Don't Shoot Me."
"I'll Spare You On One Condition," Decided Pike. "Disclose The Whole Of
This From First To Last, And Then We May Part Friends. But Try To Palm
Off One Lie Upon Me, And I'll Riddle You Through. To Begin With: What
Brought You Locked Up In The Mill?"
It Was A Wicked Tale Of A Wicked Young Jail-Bird, As Mr. Pike (Probably
The Worse Jail-Bird By Far Of The Two) Phrased It. Master Ripper Had
Purposely Caused Himself To Be Locked In The Mill, His Object Being To
Supply Himself With As Much Corn As He Could Carry About Him For The
Benefit Of His Rabbits And Pigeons And Other Live Stock At Home. He Had
Done It Twice Before, He Avowed, In Dread Of The Pistol, And Had Got Away
Safe Through The Square Hole In The Passage At The Foot Of The Back
Staircase, Whence He Had Dropped To The Ground. To His Consternation On
This Occasion, However, He Had Found The Door At The Foot Of The Stairs
Bolted, As It Never Had Been Before, And He Could Not Get To The Passage.
So He Was A Prisoner All The Afternoon, And Had Exercised His Legs
Between The Store-Room And Kitchen, Both Of Which Were Open To Him.
If Ever A Man Showed Virtuous Indignation At A Sinner's Confession, Mr.
Pike Showed It Now. "That's How You Were About In The Stubble-Field
Setting Your Traps, You Young Villain! I Saw The Coroner Look At You. And
Now About Lord Hartledon. What Did You See?"
Master Ripper Rubbed The Perspiration From His Face As He Went On With
His Tale. Pike Listened With All The Ears He Possessed And Said Not A
Word, Beyond Sundry Rough Exclamations, Until The Tale Was Done.
"You Awful Young Dog! You Saw All That From The Kitchen-Window, And Never
Tried To Get Out Of It!"
"I _Couldn't_ Get Out Of It," Pleaded The Boy. "It's Got A Wire-Net
Before It, And I Couldn't Break That."
"You Are Strong Enough To Break It Ten Times Over," Retorted Pike.
"But Then Master Would Ha' Known I'd Been In The Mill!" Cried The Boy, A
Gleam Of Cunning In His Eyes.
"Ugh," Grunted Pike. "And You Saw Exactly What You've Told Me?"
"I Saw It And Heard The Cries."
"Did He See You?"
"No; I Was Afeard To Show Myself. When Master Come Home, The First Thing
He Did Was T' Unlock That There Staircase Door, And I Got Out Without His
Seeing Me--"
"Where Did You Hide The Grain You Were Loaded With?" Demanded Pike.
"I'd Emptied It Out Again In The Store-Room," Returned The Boy. "I Told
Master There Were A Loose Skiff Out There, And He Come Out And Secured
It. Them Harvesters Come Up Next And Got Him Out Of The Water."
"Yes, You Could See Fast Enough What You Were Looking For! Well, Young
Rip," Continued Mr. Pike, Consolingly, "You Stand About As Rich A Chance
Of Being Hanged As Ever You'll Stand In All Your Born Days. If You'd
Jumped Through That Wire You'd Have Saved My Lord, And He'd Have Made It
Right For You With Old Floyd. I'd Advise You To Keep A Silent Tongue In
Your Head, If You Want To Save Your Neck."
"I Was Keeping It, Till You Come And Made Me Tell With That There
Pistol," Howled The Boy. "You Won't Go And Split On Me?" He Asked, With
Trembling Lips.
"I Won't Split On You About The Grain," Graciously Promised Pike. "It's
No Business Of Mine. As To The Other Matter--Well, I'll Not Say Anything
About That; At Any Rate, Yet Awhile. You Keep It A Secret; So Will I."
Without Another Word, Pike Extended His Hand As A Signal That The Culprit
Was At Liberty To Depart; And He Did So As Fast As His Legs Would Carry
Him. Pike Then Returned The Pistol To His Pocket And Took His Way Back To
Calne In A Thoughtful And Particularly Ungenial Mood. There Was A Doubt
Within Him Whether The Boy Had Disclosed The Truth, Even To Him.
Perhaps On No One--With The Exception Of Percival--Did The Death Of Lord
Hartledon Leave Its Effects As It Did On Lady Kirton And Her Daughter
Maude. To The One It Brought Embarrassment; To The Other, What Seemed
Very Like A Broken Heart. The Countess-Dowager's Tactics Must Change As
By Magic. She Had To Transfer The Affection And Consideration Evinced For
Edward Lord Hartledon To His Brother; And To Do It Easily And Naturally.
She Had To Obliterate From The Mind Of The Latter Her Overbearing Dislike
To Him, Cause Her Insults To Be Remembered No More. A Difficult Task,
Even For Her, Wily Woman As She Was.
How Was It To Be Done? For Three Long Hours The Night After Lord
Hartledon's Death, She Lay Awake, Thinking Out Her Plans; Perhaps For The
First Time In Her Life, For Obtuse Natures Do Not Lie Awake. The Death
Had Affected Her Only As Regarded Her Own Interests; She Could Feel For
None And Regret None In Her Utter Selfishness. One Was Fallen, But
Another Had Risen Up. "Le Roi Est Mort: Vive Le Roi!"
On The Day Following The Death She Had Sought An Interview With Percival.
Never A Woman Evinced Better Tact Than She. There Was No Violent Change
In Her Manner, No Apologies For The Past, Or Display Of Sudden Affection.
She Spoke Quietly And Sensibly Of Passing Topics: The Death, And What
Could Have Led To It; The Immediate Business On Hand, Some Of The Changes
It Entailed In The Future. "I'll Stay With You Still, Percival," She
Said, "And Look After Things A Bit For You, As I Have Been Doing For Your
Brother. It Is An Awful Shock, And We Must All Have Time To Get Over It.
If I Had Only Foreseen This, How I Might Have Spared My Temper And Poor
Maude's Feelings!"
She Looked Out Of The Corner Of Her Eye At The Young Man; But He Betrayed
No Curiosity To Hear More, And She Went On Unasked.
"You Know, Val, For A Portionless Girl, As Maude Is, It Was A Great Blow
To Me When I Found Her Fixing Her Heart Upon A Younger Son. How Cross And
Unjust It Made Me I Couldn't Conceal: Mothers Are Mothers. I Wanted Her
To Take A Fancy To Hartledon, Dear Fellow, And I Suppose She Could Not,
And It Rendered Me Cross; And I Know I Worried Her And Worried My Own
Temper, Till At Times I Was Not Conscious Of What I Said. Poor Maude! She
Did Not Rebel Openly, But I Could See Her Struggles. Only A Week Ago,
When Hartledon Was Talking About His Marrying Sometime, And Hinting That
She Might Care Fox Him If She Tried, She Scored Her Beautiful Drawing All
Over With Ugly Marks; Ran The Pencil Through It--"
"But Why Do You Tell Me This Now?" Asked Val.
"Hartledon--Dear Me! I Wonder How Long I Shall Be Getting Accustomed To
Your Name?--There's Only You And Me And Maude Left Now Of The Family,"
Cried The Dowager; "And If I Speak Of Such Things, It Is In Fulness Of
Heart. And Now About These Letters: Do You Care How They Are Worded?"
"I Don't Seem To Care About Anything," Listlessly Answered The Young Man.
"As To The Letters, I Think I'd Rather Write Them Myself, Lady Kirton."
"Indeed You Shall Not Have Any Trouble Of That Sort To-Day. _I'll_ Write
The Letters, And You May Indulge Yourself In Doing Nothing."
He Yielded In His Unstable Nature. She Spoke Of Business Letters, And It
Was Better That He Should Write Them; He Wished To
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