THE MYSTERIOUS STRANGER.—THE NIGHT WATCH.
At this moment, the stranger who had put the coachman and groom right
about the word valetudinarian, rose from the seat he had occupied in
the corner of the room, and uttering a deep, hollow groan, walked
towards the door.
The party looked at him with awe and astonishment. He was of great
height but frightfully thin, and the slight glance they could get of
his face, showed how perfectly ugly he was. In another moment he had
left the place, and there was a silence of several minutes duration
after he had done so, but it was at length broken by the coachman, who
said,—
“I say, Frank, my boy.”
“Here you is,” said Francis.
“Don’t you think if you never seed anybody as looked like a vampire
before, you have seed one now.”
“The devil,” said Francis, “you don’t mean that?”
“Yes, I do though, and it strikes me wonderful as we have been a
telling all we had to tell afore the very indiwidual, of all others, as
we oughtn’t to a told it to, that’s a vampire. If a _hoss_ is a _hoss_,
that’s a vampire, Frank! I knows it—I feels it.”
Frank looked aghast.
“Why, why,” then he said, “we have just told him where to find the Lady
Lake if he wants her. Lor—what—suppose it’s the same one as got in at
the window at Florence! I’ll have him, he can’t have got far, I should
say, by this time, and hang me if I don’t stop him and know what he is,
afore he goes any further. I shan’t sleep if I don’t.”
Without waiting for any reply, although the coachman, and Mr. Slop
both seemed to be upon the point of saying something, out rushed the
valorous Francis into the street. But in about three minutes he came
back, and sat down with a disappointed look.
“He’s off,” he said.
“In course,” said the coachman, “through the air like a sky rocket, you
might a know’d that; but arter all, Frank, he mayden’t be a vampire. Do
vampires come into public houses, eh? Answer me that will you; I rather
think that’s a settler, Frank.”
“Do you?” said Frank. “It might be, old fellow, if you could prove it.
It would be an odd thing for a vampire to come into a public house
and drink, but I don’t see, if he has anything again by it, anything
to prevent him coming and ordering and paying for something, and then
leaving it. Look there!”
Frank pointed to the brimming glass of something which was on the table
just where the mysterious man had sat, and this to the coachman and to
Slop was such proof positive that they both looked at each other with
the most rueful expression of their countenances.
“I think you are convinced now, you old ump,” added Frank.
“Rather, rather.”
“I’m all over of a cold _inspiration_,” said Slop.
“Well,” added Frank, “it’s not never of no use, you know, putting
yourself out of the way about it, and that’s the fact, and all I’ve got
to say is that I’ve got nothing to say.”
“Wery good, wery good.”
“But if you, Mr. Slop, will give us a call to-morrow and let us know
if anything wrong has took place at the London Hotel, we shall be very
much obliged to you; for it’s natural for us that we feel an interest
in what’s going on there on account of our young lady, who we won’t and
don’t think is anything else but our young lady, and if she was not,
she ought to be; and I tell you what, just keep an eye on the spooney,
young Lake.”
“I will.”
“He wants to be quite sweet with the Lady Annetta, but she can’t abide
him. But you tell us if he tries to pitch it too strong, and we shall
perhaps hit on some scheme of operations.”
All this Slop promised faithfully, and with his own nerves rather
startled at the idea of having been in the same room for the better
part of an hour with a vampire, he walked back to the hotel, and as he
had not been enjoined to any secrecy he gave the landlord a full and
particular account of all that had taken place.
This was listened to with no small degree of interest, but as mine host
of the London Hotel could make nothing of it, he could do nothing with
it.
“Slop,” he said, “I don’t like the state of things at all, I assure
you, Slop, and I rather shake than otherwise about what’s to occur
to-night. You know there’s to be a watch kept in the corridor by the
young lady’s room, or else poor thing no doubt she wouldn’t get a wink
of sleep, and I’m quite sure that I sha’n’t at all events, let what
will happen or what won’t; I’m all in a twitter now as it is, I’ve
broke nine wine glasses already; and all I can say is, I wish they
would all go away.
The landlord did not like to give good guests notice to quit his
house, but he had a consultation with Mr. Black, whom he considered to
be quite his sheet-anchor in this affair, for if that gentleman had
not offered to sit up and watch for the vampire, he, the landlord,
certainly would, despite all profitable considerations, have requested
guests who brought with them such questionable connexions to leave.
The night had now come on, and as hour after hour passed away, the
anxiety of all concerned in the affairs that were taking place at the
London hotel increased. But we need not occupy the time and attention
of the reader with surmises and reflections while facts of an
interesting and strange nature remain to be detailed.
Suffice it that at eleven o’clock the Lady Annetta retired to rest.
Two chairs, and a table on which burnt two candles, were placed in
the corridor just outside the room in which the fair girl who had the
previous night had such a visitor reposed, and there sat Mr. Black and
Mr. Lake, both determined to do their utmost to discover the mystery
of the vampire’s appearance, and to capture him should he again show
himself.
During the first half hour’s watch, Mr. Lake related to his companion
the particulars of the affair at Florence, which as it has already been
told by Francis, we need not again recapitulate, suffice it to say that
the narration was listened to by Mr. Black with great interest.
“And did you,” he said, “make no discovery of who this midnight visitor
was?”
“None whatever.”
“’Tis awfully strange.”
“It is, and has given her abundance of uneasiness.”
“And well it may, sir, I shall be very happy if through my means any
elucidation of these mysteries and truly terrific visitations should
take place.”
“You are very good sir. What is that?”
“Twelve o’clock, I think, striking by some neighbouring church
time-keeper. Hush! is it not so? Yes, twelve.”
“It is. How still the house is. I was told this was a very quiet hotel,
and so indeed I find it, but yet, I suppose upon this occasion there is
more stillness than usual.”
“Doubtless. Hush, hush! what was that? I thought I heard something like
a window opening slowly and cautiously. Hark! There again. Do you not
hear it. Hush, hush. Listen now.”
“On my life I can hear nothing.”
“Indeed your sense of hearing then is not so sharp as mine. Look there.”
He pointed as he spoke to the door of Mr. Blue’s chamber, which was
opened a very short distance, not above a couple of inches, and then he
added in a whisper, “What do you think of that?”
“By heaven! I suspected him before.”
“And I—and—be still, whatever you do. But yet perhaps it would be
better. Go down stairs and bring up the hall porter, we may as well
be in force you know. The door at the head of the stairs is open. You
can depend upon my keeping a good watch while you are gone. Now, now,
quick, or we may be pounced upon and murdered before we are aware.”
Thus urged Mr. Lake ran down stairs for the purpose of rousing up the
night-porter, and he found that that individual did indeed require
rousing up.
“Hilloa, my man,” he said, “get up!”
“Eh? eh? what? fire!”
“No, no, they want you up stairs, that’s all. You are a pretty fellow
to consider yourself a night-watch here and to be fast asleep. Why,
with the exception that you have your clothes on you, you are no more
ready than anybody else in the house.”
“I beg your pardon sir, I always sleeps with one eye open.”
“Well well, come up stairs!”
A loud scream at this moment came upon their ears, and the night-porter
staggered back again into his great leathern chair, from whence he had
just risen, and looked aghast! while Mr. Lake turned pale and trembled
fearfully.
“Good God!” he said, “what’s that?”
A bell was run furiously, and then ceased, with a sudden jar, as
if the wire had broken, which was indeed the fact. Then Mr. Lake,
mustering all the courage he possessed, ran up stairs again, leaving
the night-porter to follow him, or not as he felt inclined; but when
he reached the door at the top of the staircase, he found that it was
fast, nor could he with all his strength force it open.
“Help! help! help!” he heard a voice cry.