CHAPTER XXVI
Gilbert Eversleigh walked out of his father's office, and finding anunoccupied bench in the neighbouring Lincoln's Inn Fields, sat down toponder this terrible and altogether unexpected situation.
First, he tried to grasp the facts which had just been thrust upon him,and to see them in all their bearings.
There was no question now but he must relinquish all thoughts of KittyThornton. The sacrifice the girl was making for him and his fatherfilled him with a feeling of worship of her into which there enteredsomething sacred. In his mind he placed her on an altar, as it were, andcould have fallen down before her in adoring homage of that lofty spiritof loyalty she had shown. Now that he knew all, he determined to writeto thank her for what she had done. So far as he was concerned, it mustbe his part, he told himself, to make her sacrifice no harder. Thereforehe must abide by her decision and accept it.
Gilbert was a young man, with all the high hopes and the hot passions ofyouth, and it was not without the deepest pain that he thought of herand his vanished happiness. It was natural that he should first think ofher and of his own loss. But once he accepted her decision, he resolvedto lock away her image in his heart, and to cherish it there in secret.Having got himself into this frame of mind, he passed on to consider hisfather's position.
The greatness and importance of the firm of Eversleigh, Silwood andEversleigh, solicitors, had never for a single instant been doubted byGilbert, until his father's declaration had swept away that greatnessand importance for ever. All his life Gilbert had believed his father'sfirm was as enduringly established as the Bank of England; he regardedit as a permanent institution. It was difficult for him to realize itwas nothing now but a bankrupt concern. When he did realize it, andremembered the obligations of the firm which must exist over and abovethose arising out of the Thornton and Bennet Estates, he saw with fatalclearness Kitty's sacrifice might very well be made in vain, and thatsome other client might, and almost certainly would, bring about theexposure and ruin of the firm she had tried to save.
Then, he asked himself, what was his own duty? Without doubt, he muststand by his father, and do what he could to help him. But how?
The cause of all this disaster and calamity was Silwood, the man whom hehad instinctively disliked and distrusted. It was Silwood who had ruinedthe firm. It was through Silwood, indirectly, that he had lost Kitty.And Silwood was dead! From his grave he defied them all to touch him;there was nothing to be done to a dead man, Gilbert reflected, drearily.
But was that altogether true? The lips of the dead man were for eversealed; but had he left nothing behind him? The Eversleigh firm had beena great one, and to make away with all its funds and properties couldhave been no small business, but one which involved a large number oftransactions. Surely there must be notes, traces, indications of thesetransactions somewhere. Thousands and thousands of pounds from sales ofshares, and house or land property could not be got or disposed ofwithout leaving some mark.
So Gilbert reasoned.
And he resolved to urge his father, therefore, to have everythingconnected with Silwood's department thoroughly investigated at once. Andthen he thought of his father. "Cast your mind back to that Saturday,"his father had said. Measured by what his father must have suffered,that Saturday seemed ages ago. Poor unhappy father! A great wave of pityfor him flooded the heart of the son, who now reproached himselfbitterly for having spoken no word of sympathy.
"I must go to him," he said, rising from the bench, "and ask him to letme help him."
A few moments later Gilbert stood once more in his father's room, hisface no longer dark, but full of purpose.
"When you told me what you did just now, father," said he, "I am afraidI did not behave very well. I was so taken up with myself that I had noconsideration for you. It was wrong of me. I should have known you musthave passed through a dreadful time, in which you have suffered agonies.And now, sir, I come to request you to permit me to assist you in everyway I can."
"Gladly, my boy; but how can you? What is there that any one can do? Iam like a sinking ship," said Eversleigh, mournfully.
"Will you tell me if you have overhauled Mr. Silwood's books andpapers?"
"No, I have not. I began, but desisted."
"Why, father?"
"Because I thought Williamson was suspicious. I felt sure that he waswatching me. So I stopped, and allowed things to drift."
"But, father, the only chance you have lies in making thisinvestigation. If Williamson is in the way, he must be got rid of."
"Would not that in itself excite remark?"
"Not necessarily, surely. But if his going does cause remark, we shalljust have to put up with it. Besides, we can give him an excellentcharacter and a gratuity--these will salve his feelings."
"But what excuse can I make?"
"Can you not say you are going to make extensive changes, owing to Mr.Silwood's death?"
"He has been such a long time with us," objected Eversleigh.
"Yes, I know; but you cannot afford to keep a man who suspects you. Atany cost, he must go."
"He is a good clerk," began Eversleigh.
"I wonder if he really is!" exclaimed Gilbert. "If he was such a goodclerk, how was it that he did not know of Silwood's defalcations?"
"Perhaps he does know."
"If he does, it would be well to be sure of it. Have him in now, andtell him he is to go. If he knows anything he will speak out."
"You are so impetuous," said Eversleigh, feebly.
"I have a strong feeling," replied Gilbert, "that your safety lies inimmediate action."
"And what would be your next step?"
"I should get in an accountant familiar with legal work, and have him goover all Silwood's books and papers. Silwood cannot have disposed of allthe moneys and properties of the firm without leaving some indication ofhow he did it; and perhaps an investigation may reveal that things arenot so bad as you think. He cannot have disposed of everything. Forinstance, there must be certain trusts and other matters with which hecould not tamper. Suppose we try to look into them all, father."
A spark of hope shone for a moment in Eversleigh's eyes, but it speedilywent out.
"I am quite willing, Gilbert, but I am afraid it will not be any use,"he said, dejectedly. "Whom would you think of getting to examine thebooks and papers?"
"I fancy I know the very man. Young Archer Martin, of Roscoe andMartin."
"Could you depend on his discretion?"
"Absolutely."
Eversleigh was silent. His impulse was to surrender himself to theguidance of his son; but he was sore afraid. Gilbert saw from hisfather's face that he was hesitating.
"There is no other way, father," he cried, with decision.
"Then be it so," agreed Eversleigh.
"And what about Williamson?"
"Can you not let him remain, at least, for a time?"
"I think not, sir."
"Well, well. I am not sure it is wise."
But Gilbert had no doubts, and in the end Williamson received a notesaying that after that week his services would not be required. At thesame time, the head-clerk was given a handsome cheque as a solatium.
Gilbert next set out for the office of Roscoe and Martin, where he wasfortunate to find Archer Martin. As briefly as possible, Gilbert toldhim that he had reason to believe there had been some irregularities inhis father's office, and that his father had deputed him to invite theaccountant to make a searching investigation immediately, if that fittedin with his engagements.
"As it happens, it does; I can set to work to-morrow," said Martin.
"Of course," said Gilbert, "it is a confidential investigation--that isunderstood."
"Certainly," said the accountant, who had no idea that he mightinnocently be making himself a party to a fraud.
Archer Martin, accordingly, went to 176, New Square, the following day,and began his inquiries. Without referring to any one except Gilbert, hewent on his way, s
teadily plodding through the books and papers of thefirm. His labours extended over several days, but he had not gone veryfar when he saw the true character of the work he was engaged on. Heknew there was being disclosed bit by bit a gigantic system of fraudwhich involved huge sums of money, and that the system had beenpractised remorselessly and with diabolical cunning and ingenuity foryears. He saw that Cooper Silwood, by one means or another, hadappropriated many thousands of pounds, though what he had done with thecash did not appear. It was plain he had stopped at nothing; there werefalse entries everywhere and many forgeries.
He wondered at the ability Silwood had manifested in keeping upappearances so long. It was evident to him, from various sums ofinterest being paid to clients at the proper time, as if theirinvestments still remained, that Silwood had kept a strict account ofhis robberies, but though he searched in Silwood's room, throughout therest of the office, and even in Silwood's apartments in Stone Buildings,for some book or memoranda relating to these robberies, he could notfind it. He came to the conclusion that Silwood had either destroyed itor taken it with him. He had heard of Silwood's death as well as of thedeath of Morris Thornton, and now saw pretty clearly how matters stood.
Failing to light upon Silwood's memoranda, he tried to see what could bedone by tracking out some of the larger transactions of the defaultingsolicitor, which necessarily involved the names of other persons.
And this led him to make an extraordinary discovery, though he did notthink it so extraordinary as it really was.
Amongst the names of persons having large transactions with Silwood,there occurred that of James Russell, described as of 99, DouglasStreet, Stepney. In the aggregate, Silwood's dealings with this man cameto a vast sum, and Archer Martin thought Douglas Street, Stepney, was acurious address for one who presumably must be very well off indeed.
All through his investigation he had been in close contact with GilbertEversleigh, and he now suggested some inquiries be made about Mr. JamesRussell, of 99, Douglas Street, Stepney. This Gilbert undertook to dohimself.
Gilbert had some difficulty in finding Douglas Street, but eventuallydid find it. No. 99 turned out to be a humble house--not at all the kindof dwelling in which a man dealing with large sums of money was likelyto reside. He discovered also that it was no longer occupied by Russell,that individual with his wife and crippled child having left it sometime before; but he learned that they were poor people, living in a verypoor way. And much more he could not learn.
"What, then, was the connection between Cooper Silwood and JamesRussell?" he asked himself. "Was Russell a confederate?"
But he could get no further than this supposition. He had to contenthimself with putting a private detective on the trail of James Russell,and awaiting results.