The Middle of Things Read online

  CHAPTER XIX

  UNDER EXAMINATION

  Mr. Pawle nodded assent to this proposition and rose from his chair.

  "It's the only thing to do," he said. "We must get to the bottom of thisas quickly as possible--whether Miss Wickham can tell us much or little,we must know what she can tell. Let us all meet here again at threeo'clock--I will send one of my clerks to fetch her. But let us be clearon one point--are we to tell this young lady what our conclusions are,regarding herself?"

  "Your conclusions!" said Mr. Carless, with a sly smile. "We know nothingyet, you know, Pawle."

  "My conclusions, then," assented Mr. Pawle. "Are we--"

  Lord Ellingham quietly interrupted the old lawyer.

  "Pardon me, Mr. Pawle," he said, "but before we go any further, do youmind telling me, briefly, what your conclusions really are!"

  "I will tell your lordship in a few words," answered Mr. Pawle, readily."Wrong or right, my conclusions are these: From certain investigationswhich Mr. Viner and I have made since this affair began--with the murderof Ashton--and from certain evidence which we have unearthed, I believethat Ashton's friend Wickham, the father of the girl we are going toproduce this afternoon, was in reality your lordship's uncle, the missingLord Marketstoke. I believe that Ashton came to England in order to provethis, and that he was probably about to begin proceedings when he wasmurdered--for the sake of those papers which we have just seen. And Ibelieve, too, that we have not seen all the papers which were stolen fromhis dead body. What was produced to us just now by Methley andWoodlesford was a selection--the probability is that there are other andmore important papers in the hands of the murderer, whose cat's-paw oraccomplice this claimant, whoever he may be, is. I believe," concludedMr. Pawle, with emphasis, "that my conclusions will be found to becorrect ones, based on indisputable fact."

  Lord Ellingham looked from one solicitor to the other.

  "Then," he said, with something of a smile, "if Wickham was really myuncle, Lord Marketstoke, and this young lady you tell me of is hisdaughter--what, definitely, is my position?"

  Mr. Pawle looked at Mr. Carless, and Mr. Carless shook his head.

  "If Mr. Pawle's theory is correct," he said, "and mind you, Pawle, itwill take a lot of proving. If Mr. Pawle's theory is correct, theposition, my lord, is this. The young lady we hear of is Countess ofEllingham in her own right! She would not be the first woman to succeedto the title: there was a Countess of Ellingham in the time of George theThird. She would, of course, have to prove her claim before the House ofLords--if made good, she succeeds to titles and estates. That's the plainEnglish of it--and upon my honour," concluded Mr. Carless, "it's one ofthe most extraordinary things I ever heard of. This other affair isnothing to it!"

  Lord Ellingham again inspected the legal countenances.

  "I see nothing at all improbable about it," he said. "We may as well facethat fact at once. I will be here at three o'clock, Mr. Carless. Iconfess I should like to meet my cousin--if she really is that!"

  "Your Lordship takes it admirably!" exclaimed Mr. Carless. "Butreally--well, I don't know. However, we shall see. But, 'pon my honour,it's most odd! One claimant disposed of, another, a more formidable one,comes on!"

  "But we have not disposed of the first, have we?" suggested LordEllingham.

  "I don't anticipate any trouble in that quarter," answered Mr. Carless."As I said to those two who have just gone out--send or bring the manhere, and we'll tell in one minute if he's what he claims to be!"

  "But--how?" asked Lord Ellingham. "You seem very certain."

  "Dead certain!" asserted Mr. Carless. He looked round his callers andlaughed. "I may as well tell you," he said. "Portlethwaite drew me asideto remind me of it. The real Lord Marketstoke, if he were alive, couldeasily be identified. He lost a finger when a mere boy."

  "Ah!" exclaimed Mr. Pawle. "Good--excellent! Best bit of evidence I'veheard of. Hang this claimant! Now we can tell if Wickham really was LordMarketstoke. If necessary, we can have his body exhumed and examined."

  "It was a shooting accident," continued Mr. Carless. "He was out shootingin the park at Ellingham when a boy of fourteen or fifteen; he was usingan old muzzle-loading gun; it burst, and he lost his second finger--theright hand. It was, of course, very noticeable. Now, that small but veryimportant fact is most likely not known to Methley and Woodlesford'sclient--but it's known to Driver and to Portlethwaite and to me, and nowto all of you. If this man comes here--look at his right hand! If hepossesses his full complement of fingers, well--"

  Mr. Carless ended with a significant grimace, and Mr. Pawle, noddingassent, returned to the question which he was putting when Lord Ellinghaminterrupted him.

  "Now let us settle the point I raised," he said. "Are we to tell MissWickham what my conclusions are, or are we to leave her in ignoranceuntil we get proof that they are correct?"

  "Or--incorrect!" answered Mr. Carless with an admonitory laugh. "I shouldsay--at present, tell her nothing. Let us find out all we can from her;there are several questions I should like to ask her, myself, arising outof what you have told us. Leave all the rest until a later period. Ifyour theory is correct, Pawle, it can be established, if it isn't, thegirl may as well be left in ignorance that you ever raised it."

  "Until three o'clock, then," said Mr. Pawle.

  Three o'clock found the old lawyer and Viner pacing the pavement ofLincoln's Inn Fields in expectation of Miss Wickham's arrival. She cameat last in the taxicab which Mr. Pawle had sent for her, and her firstwords on stepping out of it were of surprise and inquiry.

  "What is it, Mr. Pawle?" she demanded as she shook hands with her twosquires. "More questions? What's it all about?"

  Mr. Pawle nudged Viner's arm.

  "My dear young lady," he answered in grave and fatherly fashion, "youmust bear in mind that a man's life is in danger. We are doing all we canto clear that unfortunate young fellow Hyde of the dreadful charge whichhas been brought against him, and to do that we must get to know all wecan about your late guardian, you know."

  "I know so little about Mr. Ashton," said Miss Wickham, lookingapprehensively at the building towards which she was being conducted."Where are you taking me?"

  "To a solicitor's office--friends of mine," answered Mr. Pawle. "Carlessand Driver--excellent people. Mr. Carless wants to ask you a fewquestions in the hope that your answers will give us a little more lighton Ashton's history. You needn't be afraid of Carless," he added as theybegan to climb the stairs. "Carless is quite a pleasant fellow--and hehas with him a very amiable young gentleman, Lord Ellingham, of whom youneedn't be afraid, either."

  "And why is Lord Ellingham, whoever he may be, there?" inquired MissWickham.

  "Lord Ellingham is also interested in your late guardian," replied Mr.Pawle. "In fact, we are all interested. So now, rub up your memory--andanswer Mr. Carless' questions."

  Viner remained in the background, quietly watching, while Mr. Pawleeffected the necessary introductions. He was at once struck by whatseemed to him an indisputable fact--between Lord Ellingham and MissWickham there was an unmistakable family likeness. And he judged from thecurious, scrutinizing look which Mr. Carless gave the two young people asthey shook hands that the same idea struck him--Mr. Carless wound up thatlook in a significant glance at Mr. Pawle, to whom he suddenly muttered afew words which Viner caught.

  "By Jove!" he whispered. "I shouldn't wonder if you're right."

  Then he placed Miss Wickham in an easy-chair on his right hand, and casta preliminary benevolent glance on her.

  "Mr. Pawle," he began, "has told us of your relationship with the lateMr. Ashton--you always regarded him as your guardian?"

  "He was my guardian," answered Miss Wickham. "My father left me inhis charge."

  "Just so. Now, have you any recollection of your father?"

  "Only very vague recollections. I was scarcely six, I think, when hedied."

  "What do you remember about him?"

  "I think he was a tall, hand
some man--I have some impression that hewas. I think, too, that he had a fair complexion and hair. But it's allvery vague."

  "Do you remember where you lived?"

  "Only that it was in a very big town--Melbourne, of course. I haverecollections of busy streets--I remember, too, that when I left there itwas very, very hot weather."

  "Do you remember Mr. Ashton at that time?"

  "Oh, yes--I remember Mr. Ashton. I had nobody else, you see; my motherhad died when I was quite little; I have no recollection whatever ofher. I remember Mr. Ashton's house, and that he used to buy me lots oftoys. His house was in a quiet part of the town, and he had a big,shady garden."

  "How long, so far as you remember, did you live with Mr. Ashton there?"

  "Not very long, I think. He told me that I was to go to England, toschool. For a little time before we sailed, I lived with Mrs.Roscombe, with whom I came to England. She was very kind to me; I wasvery fond of her."

  "And who was Mrs. Roscombe?"

  "I didn't know at the time, of course--I only knew she was Mrs. Roscombe.But Mr. Ashton told me, not long before his death, who she was. She wasthe widow of some government official, and she was returning to Englandin consequence of his death. So she took charge of me and brought meover. She used to visit me regularly at school, every week, and I used tospend my holidays with her until she died."

  "Ah!" said Mr. Carless. "She is dead?"

  "She died two years ago," answered Miss Wickham.

  "I wish she had been living," observed Mr. Carless, with a glance at Mr.Pawle. "I should have liked to see Mrs. Roscombe. Well," he continued,turning to Miss Wickham, "so Mrs. Roscombe brought you to England, toschool. What school?"

  "Ryedene School."

  "Ryedene! That's one of the most expensive schools in England, isn't it?"

  "I don't know. I--perhaps it is."

  "I happen to know it is," said Mr. Carless dryly. "Two of my clients havedaughters there, now. I've seen their bills! Do you know who paid yours?"

  "No," she answered, "I don't know. Mr. Ashton, I suppose."

  "You had everything you wanted, I dare say! Clothes, pocket-money,and so on?"

  "I've always had everything I wanted," replied Miss Wickham.

  "And you were at Ryedene twelve years?"

  "Except for the holidays--yes."

  "You must be a very learned young lady," suggested Mr. Carless.

  Miss Wickham looked round the circle of attentive faces.

  "I can play tennis and hockey very well," she said, smiling a little."And I wasn't bad at cricket the last season or two--we played cricketthere. But I'm not up to much at anything else, except that I can talkFrench decently."

  "Physical culture, eh?" observed Mr. Carless, smiling. "Very well! Now,then, in the end Mr. Ashton came home to England, and of course came tosee you, and in due course you left school, and came to his house inMarkendale Square, where he got a Mrs. Killenhall to look after you. Allthat correct? Yes? Well, then, I think, from what Mr. Pawle tells me,Mr. Ashton handed over a lot of money to you, and told you it had beenleft to you, or left in his charge for you, by your father? That iscorrect too? Very well. Now, did Mr. Ashton never tell you anything muchabout your father?"

  "No, he never did. Beyond telling me that my father was an Englishman whohad gone out to Australia and settled there, he never told me anything.But," here Miss Wickham paused and hesitated for a while, "I have anidea," she continued in the end, "that he meant to tell mesomething--what, I, of course, don't know. He once or twice--hinted thathe would tell me something, some day."

  "You didn't press him?" suggested Mr. Carless.

  "I don't think I am naturally inquisitive," replied Miss Wickham. "Icertainly did not press him. I knew he'd tell me, whatever it was, inhis own way."

  "One or two other questions," said Mr. Carless. "Do you know who yourmother was?"

  "Only that she was some one whom my father met in Australia."

  "Do you know what her maiden name was?"

  "No, only her Christian name; that was Catherine. She and my father areburied together."

  "Ah!" exclaimed Mr. Carless. "That is something else I was going to ask.You know where they are buried?"

  "Oh, yes! Because, before we sailed, Mrs. Roscombe took me to thechurchyard, or cemetery, to see my father's and mother's grave. Iremembered that perfectly. Her own husband was buried there too, closeby. I remember how we both cried."

  Mr. Carless suddenly pointed to the ornament which Miss Wickhamwas wearing.

  "Will you take that off, and let me look at it?" he asked. "Thank you,"he said, as she somewhat surprisedly obeyed. "I believe," he continued,as he quietly passed the ornament to Lord Ellingham, "that Mr. Ashtongave you this and told you it had belonged to your father? Just so!Well," he concluded, handing the ornament back, "I think that's all. Muchobliged to you, Miss Wickham. You won't understand all this, but youwill, later. Now, one of my clerks will get you a car, and we'll escortyou down to it."

  "No," said Lord Ellingham, promptly jumping to his feet. "Allow me--I'myoungest. If Miss Wickham will let me--"

  The two young people went out of the room together, and the threemen left behind looked at each other. There was a brief andsignificant silence.

  "Well, Carless?" said Mr. Pawle at last. "How now?"

  "'Pon my honour," answered Mr. Carless, "I shouldn't wonder ifyou're right!"