Part 20 (2/2)
”Ha, ha! That all depends, you know, on what your man is. If the rascal happens to have any English blood in him, it will take a Scotland Yard chap to run him down.”
”On the principle, I suppose, of 'set a rogue to catch a rogue,'”
Merrick replied, smiling.
He bad scarcely finished speaking when Hardy suddenly entered the room.
”Beg pardon, sir,” he said, addressing Ralph Mainwaring; ”but the coachman is gone! We've looked everywhere for him, but he's nowhere about the place.”
”When did he go?” asked Mr. Whitney, quickly.
”n.o.body knows, sir. Joe, the stable-boy, says he hasn't been around at all this morning.”
”Bring the boy here,” said Mr. Mainwaring.
There was instantly recalled to every one present the memory of Brown's insolent manner at the inquest, together with his confused and false statements. In a few moments Hardy returned with the stable-boy, an unkempt, ignorant lad of about fourteen, but with a face old and shrewd beyond his years.
”Are you one of the servants here?” Mr. Mainwaring inquired.
”I works here, ef that's wot yer mean; but I don't call myself n.o.body's servant.”
”How did it happen that you were not at the inquest?” he demanded.
”Didn't got no invite,” was the reply, accompanied by a grin, while Hardy explained that the boy did not belong to the place, but had been hired by the coachman to come nights and mornings and attend to the stable work.
”What do you know about this Brown?” inquired Mr. Mainwaring, addressing the boy.
”Wal, I guess he's ben a-goin' it at a putty lively gait lately.”
”You mean he was fast?”
”I guess that's about the size of it.”
”When did you see him last?”
”Hain't seen nothin' of him sence las' night, an' then he was sorter crusty an' didn't say much. I come down this mornin' an' went to work,--he allus left the stable key where I could get it,--but I ham' t seen nor heard nothin' o' him. Me'n him,” with an emphatic nod towards Hardy, ”went up to his room, but he warn't there, nor hadn't ben there all night.”
”Why do you think he was fast?”
”Wal, from all I've hearn about him I guess he's ben goin' with a kinder hard set lately. I've seen some putty tough-lookin' subs hangin' 'round the stables. There was a lot of 'em waitin' for him Wednesday night.”
”Wednesday night!” e.j.a.c.u.l.a.t.ed Mr. Whitney. ”At what time? and who were they?”
”I dunno who they was, but they was hangin' 'round about eight o'clock waitin' for him to go with 'em. An' then he's had lots of money lately.”
”How do you know this?”
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