CHAPTER XLV.
HALF A MILLION.
And so you see here we are all at sixes and sevens once more. Apparentlyas near the end of the story as when I wrote the adventures of AluredRavenshoe at the Court of Henry the Eighth in the very first chapter. IfCharles had had a little of that worthy's impudence, instead of beingthe shy, sensitive fellow he was, why, the story would have been overlong ago. In point of fact, I don't know that it would ever have beenwritten at all. So it is best as it is for all parties.
Although Charles had enlisted in Hornby's own regiment he had craftilycalculated that there was not the slightest chance of Hornby's findingit out for some time. Hornby's troop was at the Regent's Park. Thehead-quarters were at Windsor, and the only officer likely to recognisehim was Hornby's captain. And so he went to work at his new duties withan easy mind, rather amused than otherwise, and wondering where and whenit would all end.
From sheer unadulterated ignorance, I cannot follow him during the firstweek or so of his career. I have a suspicion almost amounting to acertainty, that, if I could, I should not. I do not believe that thereaders of Ravenshoe would care to hear about sword-exercise,riding-school, stable-guard, and so on. I can, however, tell you thusmuch, that Charles learnt his duties in a wonderfully short space oftime, and was a great favourite with high and low.
When William went to see Adelaide by appointment the morning after hisinterview with her, he had an interview with Lord Welter, who told himin answer to his inquiries, that Charles was groom to Lieutenant Hornby.
"I promised that I would say nothing about it," he continued, "but Ithink I ought; and Lady Welter has been persuading me to do so, if anyinquiries were made, only this morning. I am deuced glad, Ravenshoe,that none of you have forgotten him. It would be a great shame if youhad. He is a good fellow, and has been infernally used by some of us--byme, for instance."
William, in his gladness, said, "Never mind, my lord; let bygones bebygones. We shall all be to one another as we were before, please God. Ihave found Charles, at all events; so there is no gap in the old circle,except my father's. I had a message for Lady Welter."
"She is not down; she is really not well this morning, or she could haveseen you."
"It is only this. Lady Ascot begs that she will come over to lunch. Myaunt wished she would have stopped longer last night."
"Your aunt?"
"My aunt, Lady Ascot."
"Ah! I beg pardon; I am not quite used to the new state of affairs. WasLady Welter with Lady Ascot last night?"
William was obliged to say yes, but felt as if he had committed anindiscretion by having said anything about it.
"The deuce she was!" said Lord Welter. "I thought she was somewhereelse. Tell my father that I will come and see him to-day, if he don'tthink it would be too much for him."
"Ah, Lord Welter! you would have come before, if you had known----"
"I know--I know. You must know that I had my reasons for not coming.Well, I hope that you and I will be better acquainted in our newpositions; we were intimate enough in our old."
When William was gone, Lord Welter went up to his wife's dressing-roomand said--
"Lady Welter, you are a jewel. If you go on like this, you will berecognised, and we shall die at Ranford--you and I--a rich andrespectable couple. If 'ifs and ands were pots and pans,' Lady Welter,we should do surprisingly well. If, for instance, Lord Saltire could begot to like me something better than a mad dog, he would leave my fatherthe whole of his landed estate, and cut Charles Horton, whilomRavenshoe, off with the comparatively insignificant sum of eightythousand pounds, the amount of his funded property. Eh! Lady Welter?"
Adelaide actually bounded from her chair.
"Are you drunk, Welter?" she said.
"Seeing that it is but the third hour of the day, I am not, Lady Welter.Neither am I a fool. Lord Saltire would clear my father now, if he didnot know that it would be more for my benefit than his. I believe hewould sooner leave his money to a hospital than see me get one farthingof it."
"Welter," said Adelaide, eagerly, "if Charles gets hold of Lord Saltireagain, he will have the whole; the old man adores him. I know it; I seeit all now; why did I never think of it before. He thinks he is likeLord Barkham, his son. There is time yet. If that man William Ravenshoecomes this morning, you must know nothing of Charles. Mind that.Nothing. They must not meet. He may forget him. Mind, Welter, noanswer!"
She was walking up and down the room rapidly now, and Lord Welter waslooking at her with a satirical smile on his face.
"Lady Welter," he said, "the man William Ravenshoe has been here and gothis answer. By this time, Charles is receiving his lordship's blessing."
"Fool!" was all that Adelaide could say.
"Well, hardly that," said Lord Welter. "At least, _you_ should hardlycall me so. I understood the position of affairs long before you. I wasa reckless young cub not to have paid Lord Saltire more court in oldtimes; but I never knew the state of our affairs till very shortlybefore the crash came, or I might have done so. In the present case, Ihave not been such a fool. Charles is restored to Lord Saltire throughmy instrumentality. A very good basis of operations, Lady Welter."
"At the risk of about half a million of money," remarked Adelaide.
"There was no risk in the other course, certainly," said Lord Welter,"for we should never have seen a farthing of it. And besides, LadyWelter----"
"Well!"
"I have your attention. Good. It may seem strange to you, who care aboutno one in heaven or earth, but I love this fellow, this Charles Horton.I always did. He is worth all the men I ever met put together. I am gladto have been able to give him a lift this morning. Even if I had notbeen helping myself, I should have done it all the same. That iscomical, is it not? For Lord Saltire's landed property I shall fight.The campaign begins at lunch to-day, Lady Welter; so, if you will be sogood as to put on your full war-paint and feathers, we will dig up thetomahawk, and be off on the war-trail in your ladyship's brougham.Good-bye for the present."
Adelaide was beaten. She was getting afraid of her husband--afraid ofhis strong masculine cunning, of his reckless courage, and of thestrange apparition of a great brutal _heart_ at the bottom of it all.What were all her fine-spun female cobwebs worth against such a huge,blundering, thieving hornet as he?