Part 27 (1/2)
”Often,” she answered, smiling. ”What do you do then--stop a little and consider?”
”Not as a rule. The longer you consider the difficulties, the worse they look. It's generally better to go right on.”
Millicent agreed with this; and soon afterward Lisle took his departure and walked back to Nasmyth's in an unusually serious mood. They were sitting smoking when his host broached the subject that was occupying him.
”It's some time since you said anything about the project that brought you over,” he remarked.
”That's so,” a.s.sented Lisle. ”I'm fixed much as I was when we last spoke of it. When I was in Canada, I thought I'd only to find Gladwyne and scare a confession out of him. Now I find that what I've undertaken isn't by any means so simple.”
”I warned you that it wouldn't be.”
”You were right. There's his mother to consider--it's a privilege to know her--she's devoted to the fellow. Then there's Millicent; in a way, she's almost as devoted, anyhow she's a staunch friend of his. I don't know how either of them would stand the revelation.”
”It would kill Mrs. Gladwyne,” Nasmyth declared.
There was silence for a while, and then Lisle spoke again.
”I'm badly worried; any move of mine would lead to endless trouble--and yet there's the black blot on the memory of the man to whom I owe so much; I can't bring myself to let it remain. Besides all this, there's another complication.”
”Young Crestwick's somehow connected with it,” Nasmyth guessed.
Lisle did not deny it.
”That crack-brained lad seems to be the pivot on which the whole thing turns. Curious, isn't it? I wish the responsibility hadn't been laid on my shoulders. Just now I can't tell what I ought to do--it's hara.s.sing.”
”Don't force things; wait for developments,” Nasmyth advised him. ”I'm not trying to extract information; the only reason I mentioned the subject is that a man in the home counties has asked me to come up for a few weeks and bring you along. He's a good sort, there's fair sport, and it's a nice place; but I don't mind in the least whether I go or not.”
”Then I'd rather stay. I've a feeling that I may be wanted here.”
”I'm quite satisfied, for a reason I'll explain. You have ridden that young bay horse of mine. He comes of good stock and he's showing signs of an excellent pace over the hurdles. Now I couldn't expect to enter him for any first-rate event--he's hardly fast enough and it's too expensive in various ways--but there's a little semi-private meeting to be held before long at a place about thirty miles off. I might have a chance there if we put him into training immediately. You know something about horses?”
”Not much,” responded Lisle. ”I've made one long journey in the saddle in Alberta; but you've seen our British Columbian trails. Our cayuses have generally to climb, and as a rule I've used horses only for packing.
Still, I'm fond of them; I'd be interested in the thing.”
Nasmyth nodded.
”One difficulty is that there's nothing in the neighborhood that I could try him for pace against except that horse of Gladwyne's.”
”He'd no doubt let you have the beast.”
”It's possible,” Nasmyth agreed dryly. ”But I've objections to being indebted to him; and I don't want Batley, Marple and Crestwick to take a hand in and put their money on me. However, we'll think it over.”
They retired to sleep soon afterward; and the next day Lisle walked across to call on Gladwyne, in a quietly determined mood. Clarence was in his library, and he looked up with some curiosity when Lisle was shown in. Lisle came to the point at once.
”You've no doubt noticed that Jim Crestwick has been going pretty hard of late,” he said. ”Bets, speculation, and that sort of thing. He can't keep it up on a minor's allowance. It will end in a bad smash if he isn't checked.”
Gladwyne's manner became supercilious.
”I fail to see how it concerns you, or, for that matter, either of us.”