"I don"t see that Mr. Smart has anything to say about it," said her son coolly. "If he--" He paused, glaring.
I looked him squarely in the eye. If he had possessed the ac.u.men of a pollywog he would have seen that my Dutch was up.
"One moment, Mr. t.i.tus," I said, setting my jaw. "I have this to say about it. You are guests in my house. We are jointly interested in the effort to protect the Countess Tarnowsy. I consider it to be the height of imprudence for any member of your family to venture into the city, now or at any time during her stay in this castle. I happen to know that Tarnowsy is having me watched for some purpose or other. I don"t think he suspects that the Countess is here, but I greatly fear that he believes I am interested in her cause. He suspects _me_. You have heard of our recent encounter. He knows my position pretty well by this time. Mrs. t.i.tus says that the man Dillingham a.s.sures her there is no danger. Well, I can only say that Dillingham is a fool, and I don"t purpose having my own safety threatened by--"
"Your safety?" exclaimed he. "I like that! What have you got to be afraid of?"
"You seem to forget that I am harbouring a fugitive from justice," I said flatly.
Mrs. t.i.tus gasped. "How dare you--" "The Countess Tarnowsy is wanted by the authorities for kidnapping, and I think you know the facts quite as well as I do," I went on harshly. "G.o.d knows I am doing my best to protect her. I am risking more than you seem to appreciate. If she is found here, my position isn"t likely to be an enviable one. I am not thinking solely of myself, believe me, but after all I contend that I have a right to a.s.sert myself in a crisis that may affect me vitally.
I trust you will see my position and act accordingly,--with consideration, if nothing else."
Mrs. t.i.tus did not take her eyes off mine while I was speaking. There was an expression of utter amazement in them. No one had ever opposed her before in just this way, I gathered. She didn"t know what to make of it.
"I fear you exaggerate the extent of your peril, Mr. Smart," she said drily. "Of course, I have no desire to put you in jeopardy, but it seems to me--"
"Leaving me out of the case altogether, don"t you think it is a bit unfair to the Countess?" I asked in some heat. "She doesn"t want to go to jail."
"Jail?" she cried angrily.
"That"s no way to speak about--" began Colingraft furiously.
I broke in rashly. "If you please, Mr. t.i.tus, be good enough to keep your temper. I have no desire to appear harsh and arbitrary, but I can see that it is necessary to speak plainly. There isn"t anything in the world I will not do to help you and the Countess in this unfortunate business, Mrs. t.i.tus. I hope you believe me when I say as much. I am her friend; I want to be yours if you will let me. But I reserve the right to say what shall be and what shall not be done as long as you are under my roof. Just a moment, Mr. t.i.tus! I think we are quite agreed that your sister is to depart from here on the fourteenth of the month. I am to be her escort, so to speak, for a considerable distance, in company with Mr. Bangs. Well, it must be clearly understood that not one of you is to show his or her face outside these walls until after that journey is over. That"s plain-speaking, isn"t it?"
"I shall go where I please, and I"ll go to the town to-day--" roared Colingraft, getting no farther for the reason that his mother, seeing that I was desperately in earnest, gave vent to a little cry of alarm and clutched her big son by the shoulder. She begged him to listen to reason!
"Reason!" he gasped.
"If you--or any of you--put a foot outside these walls," I declared, "you will not be allowed to re-enter. That"s flat!"
"By cricky!" fell in fervent admiration from the lips of Jasper, Jr.
I glanced at his beaming, astonished face. He positively was grinning!
"Good for you! You"re a wonder, Mr. Smart! By cricky! And you"re _dead right_. We"re darn fools!"
"Jasper!" gasped Mrs. t.i.tus.
"Good for you, Jasper!" I cried warmly, and took the hand he proffered.
"Colingraft, please take me to my room," murmured the mother. "I--I feel faint. Send for Aline. Ask Mr. Bangs to come to me at once."
I bowed stiffly. "I am sorry, Mrs. t.i.tus, to have been so harsh, so a.s.sertive--"
She held up both hands. "I never was so spoken to in all my life, Mr.
Smart. I shall not forget it to my dying day."
She walked away from me, her pretty head held high and her chin suspiciously aquiver. Colingraft hastened after her, but not without giving me a stare in which rage and wonder struggled for the mastery.
I ran my hand over my moist brow.
"Gee!" said Jasper, Jr. "You"ve corked her all right, all right." He followed me into the study and I couldn"t get rid of him for hours.
Later in the forenoon the Countess, with a queer little smile on her lips, told me that her mother considered me the most wonderful, the most forceful character she had ever encountered. I brightened up at that.
But Colingraft was not yet through with me.
CHAPTER XVII
I SEE TO THE BOTTOM OF THINGS
He sought me out just before luncheon. I was in the courtyard, listening patiently to Jasper Jr."s theories and suggestions concerning the restoration of the entire facade of the castle, and what he"d do if he were in my place. Strange to say, I was considerably entertained; he was not at all offensive; on the contrary, he offered his ideas in a pleasantly ingenuous way, always supplementing them with some such salve as: "Don"t you think so, Mr. Smart?" or "I"m sure you have thought of it yourself," or "Isn"t that your idea, too?" or "You"ve done wonders with the joint, old man."
Colingraft came directly up to where we were standing. There was trouble in his eye.
"See here, Mr. Smart," he began austerely. "I"ve got something to say to you, and I"m not the sort to put it off. I appreciate what you"ve done for Aline and all that sort of thing, but your manner to-day has been intolerable, and we"ve got to come to an understanding."
I eyed him closely. "I suppose you"re about to suggest that one or the other of us must--evacuate--get out, so to speak," said I.
"Don"t talk rubbish. You"ve got my mother bawling her eyes out upstairs, and wishing she were dead. You"ve got to come off this high horse of yours. You"ve got to apologise to her, and d.a.m.ned quick, at that.
Understand?"
"Nothing will give me greater joy than to offer her my most abject apology, Mr. t.i.tus, unless it would be her unqualified forgiveness."
"You"ll have to withdraw everything you said."
"I"ll withdraw everything except my ultimatum in respect to her putting a foot outside these walls. That still stands."
"I beg to differ with you."
"You may beg till you"re black in the face," said I coolly.
He swallowed hard. His face twitched, and his hands were clenched.
"You are pretty much of a mucker, Mr. Smart," he said, between his teeth. "I"m sorry my sister has fallen into your hands. The worst of it is, she seems satisfied with everything you do. Good Lord! What she can see in you is beyond my comprehension. Protection! Why you couldn"t protect her from the a.s.sault of a chicken."
"Are you trying to insult me, Mr. t.i.tus?"
"You couldn"t resent it if I were. There never was an author with enough moral backbone to--"
"Wait! You are her brother. I don"t want to have trouble with you. But if you keep on in this strain, Mr. t.i.tus, I shall be compelled to thresh you soundly."
He fairly gasped. "Th--thresh me!" he choked out. Then he advanced.
Much to his surprise--and, strangely enough, not to my own--I failed to retreat. Instead, I extended my left fist with considerable abruptness and precision and he landed on his back.
I experienced a sensation of unholy joy. Up to that moment I had wondered whether I could do it with my left hand.