his cheerful commonplace existence. What fun they had had together, he and
Tuppence! And now–oh, he couldn’t believe it–it couldn’t be true!
TUPPENCE–DEAD! Little Tuppence, brimming over with life! It was a dream, a
horrible dream. Nothing more.
They brought him a note, a few kind words of sympathy from Peel Edgerton,
who had read the news in the paper. (There had been a large headline: EX-V.A.D.
FEARED DROWNED.) The letter ended with the offer of a post on a ranch in the
Argentine, where Sir James had considerable interests.
“Kind old beggar,” muttered Tommy, as he flung it aside.
The door opened, and Julius burst in with his usual violence. He held an
open newspaper in his hand.
“Say, what’s all this? They seem to have got some fool idea about
Tuppence.”
“It’s true,” said Tommy quietly.
“You mean they’ve done her in?”
Tommy nodded.
“I suppose when they got the treaty she–wasn’t any good to them any
longer, and they were afraid to let her go.”
“Well, I’m darned!” said Julius. “Little Tuppence. She sure was the
pluckiest little girl—-”
But suddenly something seemed to crack in Tommy’s brain. He rose to his
feet.
“Oh, get out! You don’t really care, damn you! You asked her to marry you
in your rotten cold-blooded way, but I LOVED her. I’d have given the soul out of
my body to save her from harm. I’d have stood by without a word and let her
marry you, because you could have given her the sort of time she ought to have
had, and I was only a poor devil without a penny to bless himself with. But it
wouldn’t have been because I didn’t care!”
“See here,” began Julius temperately.
“Oh, go to the devil! I can’t stand your coming here and talking about
‘little Tuppence.’ Go and look after your cousin. Tuppence is my girl! I’ve
always loved her, from the time we played together as kids. We grew up and it
was just the same. I shall never forget when I was in hospital, and she came in
in that ridiculous cap and apron! It was like a miracle to see the girl I loved
turn up in a nurse’s kit—-”
But Julius interrupted him.
“A nurse’s kit! Gee whiz! I must be going to Colney Hatch! I could swear
I’ve seen Jane in a nurse’s cap too. And that’s plumb impossible! No, by gum,
I’ve got it! It was her I saw talking to Whittington at that nursing home in
Bournemouth. She wasn’t a patient there! She was a nurse!”
“I dare say,” said Tommy angrily, “she’s probably been in with them from
the start. I shouldn’t wonder if she stole those papers from Danvers to begin
with.”
“I’m darned if she did!” shouted Julius. “She’s my cousin, and as
patriotic a girl as ever stepped.”
“I don’t care a damn what she is, but get out of here!” retorted Tommy also
at the top of his voice.
The young men were on the point of coming to blows. But suddenly, with an
almost magical abruptness, Julius’s anger abated.
“All right, son,” he said quietly, “I’m going. I don’t blame you any for
what you’ve been saying. It’s mighty lucky you did say it. I’ve been the most
almighty blithering darned idiot that it’s possible to imagine. Calm
down”–Tommy had made an impatient gesture–“I’m going right away now–going to
the London and North Western Railway depot, if you want to know.”
“I don’t care a damn where you’re going,” growled Tommy.
As the door closed behind Julius, he returned to his suit-case.
“That’s the lot,” he murmured, and rang the bell.
“Take my luggage down.”
“Yes, sir. Going away, sir?”
“I’m going to the devil,” said Tommy, regardless of the menial’s feelings.
That functionary, however, merely replied respectfully:
“Yes, sir. Shall I call a taxi?”
Tommy nodded.
Where was he going? He hadn’t the faintest idea. Beyond a fixed
determination to get even with Mr. Brown he had no plans. He re-read Sir James’s
letter, and shook his head. Tuppence must be avenged. Still, it was kind of the
old fellow.
“Better answer it, I suppose.” He went across to the writing-table. With