Part 53 (1/2)
”Certainly,” I said, and my mother, evidently thinking that Bill had come relative to some matter connected with the estate, left us.
”Ave 'ee seed yer brother, sur?” said Bill, as soon as she was gone.
”Yes, last night.”
”'Scuse me, sur; but was 'ee friendly?”
I did not resent this question, for Bill knew of our past relations, he knew what I had said when I heard of Wilfred's cruelty to Ruth.
”No,” I said.
”You'll forgive me, Maaster Roger,” went on Bill, ”but I've got a raison for axin'; was anything said about Miss Ruth?”
”Nothing definite. Why?”
”Maaster Roger,” said Bill, as if feeling his way, ”people do zay as 'ow he will never stand no chance wi' Miss Ruth now, but do 'ee think 'ee wudd'n try to kip you from 'avin' 'er?”
”I think he would,” I cried. ”But what then?”
”Maaster Roger, I'm afraid he'll bait 'ee after all, ef you doan't maake haste.”
”I don't understand; tell me what you mean quickly.”
”Well, Maaster Roger, yesterday I was over to Polcoath Downs. As you knaw, 'tes 'bout fifteen mile from here. I've got a brother as do live there, the waun younger'n me. You remember Daniel, doan't 'ee?”
”Very well. Go on quickly.”
”Well, I 'adn't seed un for a long time, so I stayed till nearly mornin', and as I was comin' on the road 'bout an hour afore daylight I heerd the sound of hosses. I was goin' down a steep hill when I heerd it, and I wondered who twas comin' at that time. In a minute more I seed two men comin' ridin'. They wa'ant goin' very vast, so I could hear 'em talkin. When I got to the bottom of the hill I sed to meself, I wan't let those chaps zee me, so I gets under a bush cloase to a pool beside the road. As luck wud 'ave it, they got off their 'osses right against where I was, so as to let um drink, and then I seed that one of them was yer brother, and tother a strange chap, as Maaster Wilfred 'ave got very thick wi'.”
”Who was he?”
”I don't knaw, 'cept 'ee's a bad un. 'Ee don't do nothin' but loaf around the Manor and the kiddley-wink (beershop). I'm told as 'ow he's terrible thick wi' Maaster Wilfred, who do kip un to do all soarts ov dirty jobs. I've 'eerd 'ee's from Plymouth, and he goes by the name of Jake Blackburn.”
”Well?”
”Well, Maaster Wilfred wur sayin' somethin' about his brother comin'
'ome again and wis.h.i.+n' he knawed he wur comin', as then Jake cud 'ave stopped un from comin' home. Then, Maaster Roger, I 'ad a sort o'
notion 'ow that you'd come 'ome again, and I wur glad.”
”What then? Tell me quickly.”
”Then your brother said as 'ow he'd pay you out now, and that, though you might get the old estate, which was mortgaged, you shud never 'ave the girl you loved.”
”Why? How?”
”I couldn't rightly make out, but I heerd Maaster Wilfred zay that he'd kill yer weth hes own 'and rather than you shud ever 'ave her. Then I 'eerd Jake Blackburn ax what 'ee'd got to do wi' that, and your brother told 'im that ef Miss Ruth didn't come down from 'er 'igh 'oss, there'd be some work for 'im to do.”
”You don't mean to say that Wilfred would use this villain to kill Ruth?”
”I don't say nothin', sur, but I knaw Maaster Wilfred wur awful mad, and wur tellin' Jake that ef 'ee ded'n do as he was told he'd put a 'angman's rope round es nudd.i.c.k. I 'eerd un zay, too, that he wud tell 'er you was dead, and that it wur 'er place to 'ave him, and if she wudden--well, and then they was whisperin' one to another.”