IN WHICH THE GHOST IS LAID
My Lady Elizabeth Carlyon, seated upon a rickety chair among a pile of
other lumber high under the eaves, kicked her pretty heels for very
triumph as she watched the tatterdemalion eat and drink the dainty meal
she had just set before him.
"O Charles--'tis all so vastly romantic!" she exclaimed.
My Lord of Medhurst, chancing to have his mouth rather full, spluttered
and lifted handsome head indignantly; thus the likeness to his twin
sister was manifest, the same delicate profile and regularity of
features, bright, fearless eyes and firm set of mouth and chin, the
same proud and lofty carriage of the head.
"Romantic be damned, Bet--saving your presence!" said he, "I've led a
very dog's life----"
"My poor, poor boy!" she sighed, touching his thin cheek with gentle,
loving fingers which he immediately kissed; thereafter he fell to upon
the viands before him with renewed appetite and gusto.
"Egad, Bet," he mumbled, "this is better than a diet of raw turnips and
blackberries or eggs sucked warm from the nest----"
"O Charles, hath it been so bad as that?"
"Aye--and worse! Lord, Bet--lass, I've begged and thieved my way
hither from the Border. Heaven only knows how oft I've sat i' the
stocks for a ravished hen, been kicked and cuffed and stoned out o'
villages for a vagrant, consorted with rogues of all kinds, hidden in
barns, slept in hayricks and hedges, been abused by man, and stormed at
and buffeted by the elements and, on the whole--am the better for it.
Nay, sweet lass, no tears!"
Down went knife and fork with a clatter and his ragged sleeve was about
her. "No tears, Bet," said he consolingly, "damme, I'll not endure
'em!"
"But O my dear, to think what you have suffered and I--so careless,
while you, Charles, you----"
"Learned the meaning of life, Bet! Learned to--to be a man, for I do
protest the beggar is a better man than ever was his idle scatterbrain
lordship. A year ago when I had all and more than I needed, I was a
discontented fool a--a very ass, Bet. To-day, though I've lost all,
I've found--I've learned--Egad, I don't know just how to put it but
you--you get me, Bet?"
"I understand, dearest boy!"
"Y'see, Bet lass, hardship makes a man either a rogue or a--very man.
And, though I'm a beggar, I'm no rogue. 'Twas a great adventure, Bet,
a noble effort brought to red ruin by--ah well--'tis finished! I was
wounded, as I told you, and had to lie hid for weary weeks. When I
ventured abroad at last, 'twas to learn poor Derwentwater was executed
and Eversleigh too--poor old Dick! And the rest either in prison with
Nithsdale or scattered God knoweth where. So there was I, destitute
and with none to turn to of all my friends--for, as you know, 'tis
prison or death to shelter such as I, and so in my extremity I--I came
to you, Betty----"
"Thank God!" she whispered fervently, giving him a little squeeze.
"But only to beg money enough to carry me beyond seas, dearest!
To-night or to-morrow at latest I must be gone----"
"Pho--'tis preposterous, foolish boy! 'Twere madness, dear Charles! I
say you shall remain here safe hid until you are fully recovered of
your sufferings!"
"Nay Bet, I'll be curst if I do! How, skulk here 'neath your petticoat
and let you run the risk of sheltering a 'rebel'? No, no, I'll be----"
"You'll be ruled by me, dear Charles, of course! As for danger, I am
your sister and proud to share it with you----" Hereupon he kissed her
heartily and sitting down on the floor beside her made great play with
knife and fork again.
"In three or four days at most I should reach the sea, Betty. And I'm
determined on making the attempt within a night or so. As for
risk--bah! I'm become so adept at skulking and hiding I'd elude a
whole regiment! And with money in my pocket and no need to thieve or
poach--Egad! Talking of poaching, I should be on my way to the
plantations at this minute but for a neighbour of yours----"
"Neighbour, Charles?"
"Aye--tall, keen-eyed, soft-spoken and dev'lish placid; true-blue
'spite his limp and infernal old coat----"
"Ah," said Betty softly, "you mean Major d'Arcy, of course!"
"That was the name, I believe, and 'tis thanks to him----"
"Tell me all about it, Charles."
"Well, I'd poached a rabbit, Bet. Keeper saw me, knocked keeper down
and bolted. Other keepers headed me off but I ran like a hare and
bursting through a hedge, came full tilt upon three be-ruffled
exquisites lounging down that quiet bye-lane for all the world as it
had been St. James's--and Bet, who should they be but Alton, Marchdale
and Alvaston! Seeing me in my rags and the keepers in full cry, Alton
yells a 'view hallo' and after me they came on the instant. And a
dev'lish fine run I gave 'em, egad! O Betty, I mired 'em in bogs and
tore 'em finely in brambles and things before they ran me to
earth--even then I doubled up Alton with a leveller, thumped Alvaston
on the ear and Marchdale on the nose. Finally the keepers dragged me
before a little pompous fellow with a scratch wig and red face, called
himself Rington. By this time a crowd had collected and though I was
minded to get word to Alvaston 'twas too late, Rington's keepers and
the yokels were all about me. So they marched me off in triumph to the
Squire, Major d'Arcy, who, smiling mighty affable, threatened to shoot
Rington, sent the crowd off with a flea in their ear, as you might say,
and me to the kitchen to bathe my hurts and eat a meal, and so to the
lock-up. Next morning he woke me very early, bestowed on me some
useful advice, a couple o' guineas and my liberty and limped serenely
off."
Here my Lord Medhurst proceeded to finish what remained of his supper
while Betty sat, chin in hand, staring at the dormer window just now
glowing with sunset.
"To-morrow there's no moon. I shall start to-morrow, Bet."
"Faith and you'll not, Charles!"
"Aye, but I will. Look'ee Bet, I'm determined----"
"See here, Charles--so am I!"
"Pish, girl!" said he, looking dignified.
"Tush, boy!" said she, kissing him.
"Nay but, dear Bet, I've your safety at heart and therefore----"
"But, dearest Charles, you've no money in your pocket--and therefore!"
"Egad and that's true enough!" said he ruefully.
"So you'll be ruled by me, boy, and stay here until I think you are fit
for travel."
"What o' the servants?"
"This part of the house is empty and--I'll manage the servants!"
"There's Aunt Belinda, she's an infernal sharp nose, Bet."
"Nay, I'll manage Aunt Belinda."
"Why then, what of this Dalroyd?"
"O!" said my lady, knitting black brows, "I'll manage him also."
"Look'ee Bet, I'll allow you've a head, but this fellow's dangerous."
"How so, Charles?"
"Well, he's not afraid o' ghosts for one thing----"
"Ghosts?"
"Y'see Bet, when I reached Westerham my difficulty was to get word with
you and for the first night and day or so I lay hid in the ruined mill.
And having nought better to do, I started to haunt the place and by
means of an old sack and a pair of ram's horns I contrived to be a
sufficiently convincing ghost----" Here his lordship chuckled.
"'Twas madness, Charles."
"So 'twas and yet, I vow----" His lordship chuckled again.
"But what of Mr. Dalroyd, Charles?"
"Faith, he took such a plaguy interest in the haunted mill that I left
it and took to haunting the churchyard instead--used to hide in a
mouldy vault----"
"Charles!" cried Lady Betty and shuddered.
"Finally he and his fellow hunted me out o' that and here I am.
Haunting hath its drawbacks and 'twould have saved me much of
discomfort had you received the letter I writ you and sent by the
little girl."
"Tell me again what was in it, Charles."
His lordship scratched his head and wrinkled youthful brow.
"So far as I remember, Bet, I writ you these words: 'Meet me at
midnight in your garden with fifty guineas for your loving and
misfortunate fugitive, Charles.'"
Lady Betty set her chin on white fist and stared at her brother so
fixedly that he choked upon his last mouthful of supper and
remonstrated:
"Gad, Bet, why d'ye fix a man so wi' such great eyes? What might ye be
thinking this time?"
"That we are grown more like each other than ever, dear--'tis
marvellous! Aye, 'tis marvellous," she continued absently, "though
your voice will never do!"
"Voice, Bet? Egad, what's in your mind now?"
"Mr. Dalroyd, Charles, for one thing."
"Aye, and what of the fellow?"
"Would he were choked with a flap-dragon. But--meanwhile----"
"What, Betty?"
"Hark, there's aunt wailing for me, I must go. You are free of all the
upper chambers of this wing, but mind, if I whistle you must get you
into hiding at once."
So saying, she shook portentous finger at him, smiled and vanished.