MEMORY
For some minutes wild confusion prevailed. Lady Carbis knelt by the
sofa, and called wildly on my friend to speak to her. Lord Carbis
talked incoherently, and made all sorts of impossible suggestions.
Evidently he was beside himself with joy and fear. Sir Thomas Bolivick
looked from one to another as if asking for explanations, while Lorna
Bolivick, with pale, eager face and wild eyes, stood like one
transfixed.
But she was the first to recover herself. Swiftly she went to the
sofa, and caught Edgecumbe's hand. Then she knelt down and placed her
ear to his heart.
'He is alive,' she said; 'his heart beats. I think he will soon be
better.'
'Yes, yes,' stammered Lord Carbis. 'He was always a strong boy--hard
as nails, hard as nails. Oh, it's wonderful, wonderful! It's my son,
my only son, Sir Thomas. I'd given him up for dead. It's years now
since--since he was last seen. Ah, look, his eyelids are quivering!
Stand back and give him air. But I can't understand. Where's he been
all this time? Why hasn't he let us know where he was? It's not like
him. He was always such a good boy, and so fond of his mother. I got
a paper from India, too; announcing his death. I can't understand it
all. Perhaps you can explain, Sir Thomas----'
Thus he went on talking, scarcely conscious of what he was saying.
Evidently the shock had almost unhinged his mind, and he was merely
giving expression to the fugitive thoughts that came to him.
As Edgecumbe's eyes opened, I felt a strange quiver of joy in my heart.
What I saw was no madman's stare, rather it suggested placid
contentment. For a few seconds he glanced from one to another, as if
trying to comprehend, and co-ordinate what had taken place; then he
heaved a deep sigh, half of satisfaction, half of weariness.
'It's all gone,' he murmured like one speaking to himself.
'What is gone, my darling?' asked Lady Carbis.
'The mists, the cobwebs, the black curtain,' he replied.
I heard her gasp as if in fear. I knew of what she was thinking; but
she spoke no word. Instead she continued looking at him with love-lit
eyes.
For a few seconds he lay like one thinking, then he rubbed the back of
his right-hand across his eyes, and laughed like one amused.
'Oh, little mother,' he said, 'it is good to see you again! Good to
know--there kiss me. That's right; it makes me feel as though I were a
kid again, and you were putting me to bed like you did in the old days.'
Lady Carbis kissed him eagerly, calling him all sorts of endearing
names.
'It's your old mother!' she murmured. 'Are you better, Jack, my
darling?'
'Yes, heaps better. Why, there you are, dad! You see I've turned up
again. Oh, I _am_ glad to see you!' and he held out his hand.
'Jack, Jack,' sobbed his father, 'tell me you are all right.'
On considering it all, afterwards, it seemed to me that it was not a
bit what I should have expected him to say, but facts have a wonderful
way of laughing at fancies.
'I feel better every second,' he said. 'Everything came back so
suddenly that I felt like a man bowled over. You see, I couldn't grasp
it all. But--but I'm settling down now. I--I--oh, I'm afraid I'm an
awful nuisance. Forgive me. Thank you all for being so good.'
I saw his eyes rest on Lorna, and his lips twitched as if in pain, but
only for a moment.
'Where's Luscombe?' he asked. 'Ah, there you are, old man. You must
know Luscombe, little mother. He's the truest pal a chap ever had.
But for him--but there we'll talk about that later.'
A minute later Edgecumbe was led by his mother into the library, while
Lord Carbis walked on the other side of his newly-found son.
Never in all my experience have I sat down to such a strange dinner
party as on that night. We were all wild with excitement, and yet we
appeared to talk calmly about things that didn't matter a bit. What we
ate, or whether we ate, I have not the slightest remembrance.
Personally I felt as though I were dreaming, and that I should
presently wake up and find things in their normal condition again. But
it was easy to see that each was thinking deeply. Especially did Sir
Thomas and Springfield show that they were considering what the
evening's happenings might mean.
Strange as it may seem, little was said about the happening which had
created such a consternation. Of course it was in all our minds, but
to speak about it seemed for some time like trespassing on forbidden
ground.
'Anyhow,' said Lady Bolivick presently, 'the dear things will want some
dinner, James,' and she turned to the butler, 'see that something fit
to eat is kept for Lord and Lady Carbis, and Major----that is their
son.'
'Yes, my lady.'
'It's all very wonderful, I'm sure,' went on Lady Bolivick. 'I
hope--that is--they won't be disappointed in him. Of, course he's had
a wonderful career, and done unheard-of things, but if he sticks to
what he said about never taking a penny of money made by
drink--there--there'll be all sorts of difficulties.'
'Yes, but I imagine he'll chuck all that,' and Springfield seemed like
a man speaking to himself.
'Oh, I hope not,' said Lorna.
'You hope not!' and her father spoke as if in astonishment.
'Yes,' cried the girl. 'It was so fine--and so true. When I read his
speech in _The Times_, I felt just as he did.'
'Nonsense, Lorna! Why, if he stands by his crazy words, he'll still be
a poor man with nothing but his pay to live on. He'll sacrifice one of
the finest fortunes in England.'
Almost unconsciously I looked towards George St. Mabyn, whom I had
almost forgotten in my excitement, and I saw that he looked like a
haunted man. His face was drawn and haggard, although I judged he had
been drinking freely through dinner. I called to mind the words
Edgecumbe had uttered just before Lord and Lady Carbis came into the
room, and I wondered what they meant.
'No,' said Sir Thomas, who was evidently thinking of his daughter's
words, 'he'll not be fool enough for that. What do you think,
Luscombe?'
I was silent, for in truth I did not know what to say. In one sense
Sir Thomas had reason on his side, for such an act would seem like
madness. But I was by no means sure. I had known Edgecumbe for more
than two years, and I did not believe that even the shock which led him
to recover his memory, could change his strong determined nature.
The ladies left the room just then, but a few seconds later Lorna
Bolivick returned and came straight towards me.
'He wants you,' she said, and I saw that her eyes burnt with excitement.
I made my way to the library, where my friend met me with a laugh.
'You mustn't keep away from me, old man,' he said, 'I want you--want
you badly.'