Part 22 (1/2)

He comes in for a drink most mornings.”

Laverick nodded.

”I knew I'd seen your face somewhere,” he said. ”What do you want with Mr. Morrison?”

The man was silent. He twirled his hat and looked embarra.s.sed.

”It's a matter I shouldn't like to mention to any one except Mr.

Morrison himself, sir,” he declared finally. ”If you could put me in the way of seeing him, I'd be glad. I may say that it would be to his advantage, too.”

Laverick was thoughtful for a moment.

”As it happens, that's a little difficult,” he explained. ”Mr.

Morrison and I disagreed on a matter of business last night. I undertook certain responsibilities which he should have shared, and he arranged to leave the firm and the country at once. We parted--well, not exactly the best of friends. I am afraid I cannot give you any information.”

”You haven't seen him since then, sir?” the man asked.

Laverick lied promptly but he lied badly. His visitor was not in the least convinced.

”I am afraid I haven't made myself quite plain, sir,” he said.

”It's to do him a bit o' good that I'm here. I'm not wis.h.i.+ng him any harm at all. On the contrary, it's a great deal more to his advantage to see me than it will be mine to find him.”

”I think,” Laverick suggested, ”that you had better be frank with me. Supposing I knew where to catch Morrison before he left the country, I could easily deal with you on his behalf.”

The man looked doubtful.

”You see, sir,” he replied awkwardly, ”it's a matter I wouldn't like to breathe a word about to any one but Mr. Morrison himself.

It's--it's a bit serious.”

The man's face gave weight to his words. Curiously enough, the gleam of terror which Laverick caught in his white face reminded him of a similar look which he had seen in Morrison's eyes barely an hour ago. To gain time, Laverick moved across the room, took a cigarette from a box and lit it. A conviction was forming itself in his mind. There was something definite behind these hysterical paroxysms of his late partner, something of which this man had an inkling.

”Look here,” he said, throwing himself into an easychair, ”I think you had better be frank with me. I must know more than I know at present before I help you to find Morrison, even if he is to be found. We didn't part very good friends, but I'm his friend enough--for the sake of others,” he added, after a moment's hesitation, ”to do all that I could to help him out of any difficulty he may have stumbled into. So you see that so far as anything you may have to say to him is concerned, I think you might as well say it to me.”

”You couldn't see your way, then, sir,” the man continued doggedly, ”to tell me where I could find Mr. Morrison himself?”

”No, I couldn't,” Laverick decided. ”Even if I knew exactly where he was--and I'm not admitting that--I couldn't put you in touch with him unless I knew what your business was.”

The man's eyes gleamed. He was a typical waiter--pasty-faced, unwholesome-looking--but he had small eyes of a greenish cast, and they were expressive.

”I think, sir,” he said, ”you've some idea yourself, then, that Mr.

Morrison has been getting into a bit of trouble.”

”We won't discuss that,” Laverick answered. ”You must either go away--it's past nine o'clock and I haven't had my dinner yet--or you must treat me as you would Mr. Morrison.”

The man looked upon the carpet for several moments.

”Very well, sir,” he said, ”there's no great reason why I should put myself out about this at all. The only thing is--”

He hesitated.