Mr. Cullen rose at once to his feet.
"My warning has been given, sir," he said. "It only remains for me now to wish you good morning, and to a.s.sure you most regretfully that your name will be added to those whom Scotland Yard thinks it well to watch and that your movements from place to place will be noted."
"I trust that Scotland Yard will benefit," I replied politely, and showed him out.
At half past ten I rang up 3771A Gerrard. The telephone was answered almost immediately by a man, apparently a servant. I inquired for Mr.
Parker and in a moment or two I heard his voice at the telephone.
"This is Joseph H. Parker speaking. Who are you?"
"I am Paul Walmsley. You told me I might ring up between ten and eleven."
"Sure!" was the prompt reply. "My dear fellow, I am delighted to hear from you. None the worse for our little adventure last night, I hope?"
"Not in the least," I a.s.sured him. "On the contrary I am looking forward to another."
"You shall have one," was the delighted answer.
"What about--What is it, Eve? Excuse me for one moment, Mr. Walmsley."
Mr. Parker was apparently dragged away from the telephone. I waited impatiently. He returned in a moment or two. His voice sounded as though he were a little irritated.
"Sorry," he said. "I was going to make a little suggestion to you for this evening, but my daughter here doesn"t fall in with it. They will have their own way--these girls."
"It"s very disappointing!" I said. "Don"t you think you could prevail on her?"
"Look here!" Mr. Parker continued. "I"ll tell you what: Let"s meet accidentally at dinner tonight. I"ll talk Eve round before then. You drop into Stephano"s for dinner at about seven-thirty. Then, when you see us there, you can come over and join us."
"Thank you very much," I replied heartily. "By the by, I suppose you couldn"t tell me your address? I should like to send Miss Parker some flowers."
Mr. Parker obviously hesitated.
"Better not," he decided regretfully--"not this morning, at any rate. Eve is a bit peculiar; and if you come into our little scheme and it goes wrong the less you know of us the better. See you later!"
I did see Mr. Parker later, but not quite so late as the time appointed.
He was in the American bar at the Milan when I looked in there just before luncheon and was talking to two of the most ferocious and objectionable- looking ruffians I had ever seen in my life. He glanced at me blandly, but without any sign of recognition, save that I fancied I caught the slightest twitch of his left eyebrow. I took the hint and did not join him. My reward came presently; for, after leaving the room with his two acquaintances, Mr. Parker strolled back again, and coming straight over to me clapped me on the shoulder.
"This is capital!" he exclaimed. "We meet tonight?"
"Without a doubt," I a.s.sured him.
He drew me a little on one side.
"Say," he inquired, scratching the side of his chin, "have you any objection to a bit of a sc.r.a.p?"
"Not the slightest," I replied, "so long as Miss Parker is out of it!"
"Good boy!" Mr. Parker p.r.o.nounced. "Yes; we"ll keep her out of it, all right. I shall count on you then. Just keep yourself in reserve. We"ll talk it over at dinner time. You just stroll in casually and I"ll call you over. By the by," he added, lowering his voice, "did you see those two fellows I was with?"
"I saw them!" I confessed. "They were just a trifle noticeable."
Mr. Parker came a little nearer to me. He accentuated his words by beating on the palm of his left hand with two fingers of his right.
"Absolutely, my dear Walmsley, two of the most unmitigated and desperate ruffians on either continent!"
"They looked it," I agreed heartily.
"Their record," Mr. Parker continued--"their police record, I mean--is one of the most wonderful things ever put on paper. The marvelous thing is how, even for a few minutes, they should be out of prison! Did you notice the one with the cast in his eye?"
"I did," I admitted.
"They used to call him Angel Jake," Mr. Parker proceeded confidentially.
"He was sentenced to death once for shooting a policeman, but there was some technicality--he was tried in the wrong court--so he got off."
"A very interesting acquaintance," I remarked with utterly wasted sarcasm.
"They"re fairly up to their necks in trouble, both of them, on the other side," Mr. Parker declared with relish; "and they"re kind o" looking for it here."
I took him by the arm and led him out of the bar into a retired corner of the smoking room. We sat upon a divan and had the room almost to ourselves.
"How is Miss Parker this morning?" I asked.
"Fine!" her father replied. "I told her about the flowers and it made her quite homesick. Girls miss that sort of thing, you know; and over here, living under a sort of cloud, as it were, one can"t risk making many friends."
It was a very good opening for me and I took advantage of it.
"Why do you choose to live under a cloud, Mr. Parker?" I asked.
"My dear fellow," he replied earnestly, "I don"t altogether choose. I have been frank with you. It"s my life."
"If it were only a question of money----" I began tentatively.
"A question of money!" Mr. Parker interrupted. "Isn"t everything a question of money? Say, what do you mean exactly?"
"I mean that I admire your daughter, sir--I admire her immensely," I told him. "If she"d have me I"d marry her to-morrow, I am not what you would call a wealthy man, but I have enough money for all reasonable purposes."
Mr. Parker was clearly staggered. He stroked his waistcoat for a moment in an absent sort of way.
"This takes my breath away!" he exclaimed. "Let us understand exactly what it means."
"It means," I told him bluntly, "that I"ll make a settlement upon your daughter and give you enough to live on."
He looked first at me and then at the carpet. He began to whistle softly.
"And they always told me," he murmured under his breath, "that you Britishers were so cautious! Why, you know nothing about us at all except what I"ve told you, and goodness knows that isn"t much of a recommendation! Besides, I may not have told you half!"
"I am willing to take my risk," I declared. "I simply don"t care. Once in a lifetime a man has that feeling for a woman. If he is wise he goes nap on it. I have never had it before and I am not going to let go. I feel that if I do I may regret it all my life. I don"t want any other woman in this world except your daughter, and what I possess in life worth having I am willing to give to make sure of her."