Part 6 (1/2)
His friend at once leaped towards the vehicle pointed out, but Edwin did not follow, he glanced wildly round in search of another carriage.
”You are hurt--Mr Gurwood, if I mistake not,--lean on me,” said Mr Sharp.
”It's nothing--only a scratch. Ha! that's the carriage, follow me,”
cried Edwin, struggling towards a first-cla.s.s carriage, which appeared considerably damaged, though it had not left the rails. He wrenched open the door, and, springing in, found Captain Lee striving in vain to lift his daughter, who had fainted. Edwin stooped, raised her in his arms, and, kicking open the door on the opposite side, leaped down, followed by the captain. They quickly made their way to the station, where they found most of the pa.s.sengers, hurt and unhurt, already a.s.sembled, with two doctors, who chanced to be in the train, attending to them.
Edwin laid his light burden tenderly on a couch and one of the doctors immediately attended to her. While he was applying restoratives Mr Blunt touched Edwin on the elbow and requested him to follow him. With a feeling of sudden anger Gurwood turned round, but before he could speak his eye fell on Mrs Tipps, who sat on a bench leaning on her son's breast, and looking deadly pale but quite composed.
”My dear Mrs Tipps,” exclaimed the youth, stepping hastily forward, ”I hope--I trust--”
”Oh, Edwin--thank you, my dear fellow,” cried Joseph, grasping his hand and shaking it. ”She is not hurt, thank G.o.d--not even a scratch--only a little shaken. Fetch a gla.s.s of water, you'll find one in the booking-office.”
Gurwood ran out to fetch it. As he was returning he met Captain Lee leading his daughter out of the waiting-room.
”I sincerely hope that your daughter is not hurt,” he said, in earnest tones. ”Perhaps a little water might--”
”No, thank you,” said the captain somewhat stiffly.
”The carriage is waiting, sir,” said a servant in livery, coming up at the moment and touching his hat.
Emma looked at Edwin for a second, and, with a slight but perplexed smile of acknowledgment, pa.s.sed on.
Next moment the carriage drove away, and she was gone. Edwin at the same time became aware of the fact that the pertinacious Blunt was at his side. Walking quickly into the waiting-room he presented the gla.s.s of water to Mrs Tipps, but to his surprise that eccentric lady rose hastily and said,--”Thank you, Mr Gurwood, many thanks, but I am better. Come, Joseph--let us hasten to our darling Netta. Have you sent for a fly?”
”There is one waiting, mother--take my arm. Many, many thanks for your kindness in coming with her, Gurwood,” said Tipps. ”I can't ask you to come with me just now, I--”
The rest of his speech was lost in consequence of the impatient old lady dragging her son away, but what had been heard of it was sufficient to fill Mr Blunt with surprise and perplexity.
”Well, Blunt,” said Mr Superintendent Sharp, coming up at that moment, ”what has brought you here?”
The detective related his story privately to his superior, and remarked that he began to fear there must be some mistake.
”Yes, there is a mistake of some sort,” said Sharp, with a laugh, ”for I've met him frequently at Clatterby station, and know him to be a friend of Mr Tipps; but you have done your duty, Blunt, so you can now leave the gentleman to me,” saying which he went up to Edwin and entered into an under-toned conversation with him, during which it might have been observed that Edwin looked a little confused at times, and Mr Sharp seemed not a little amused.
”Well, it's all right,” he said at last, ”we have telegraphed for a special train to take on the pa.s.sengers who wish to proceed, and you can go back, if you choose, in the up train, which is about due. It will be able to get past in the course of half-an-hour. Fortunately the rails of the up-line are not damaged and the wreck can soon be cleared.”
Just then the dandy with the sleepy eyes and long whiskers sauntered up to the porter on duty, with an unconcerned and lazy air. He had received no further injury than a shaking, and therefore felt that he could afford to affect a cool and not-easy-to-be-ruffled demeanour.
”Aw--po-taw,” said he, twirling his watch-key, ”w'en d'you expect anotha twain to take us on?”
”Don't know, sir, probably half-an-hour.”
”Aw! Dooced awkwad. My fwend has got the bwidge of his nose damaged, besides some sort of internal injuway, and won't be able to attend to business to-night, I fear--dooced awkwad.”
”D'you hear that?” whispered Sharp to Gurwood, as the ”fwend” in question--he with the checked trousers--sauntered past holding a handkerchief to his nose. ”I know by the way in which that was said that there will be something more heard some day hence of our fop in checks. Just come and stand with me in the doorway of the waiting-room, and listen to what some of the other pa.s.sengers are saying.”
”Very hard,” observed a middle-aged man with a sour countenance, who did not present the appearance of one who had sustained any injury at all, ”very hard this. I shall miss meeting with a friend, and perhaps lose doin' a good stroke of business to-night.”
”Be thankful you haven't lost your life,” said Will Garvie, who supported the head of his injured mate.