"Do you mean to taunt me with my poverty?" exclaimed the ruffian, enraged.
"No; I am poorer than you."
"You look like it."
"It is true. I was robbed in the cars by a pickpocket, and because I was penniless and could not pay my fare I was put off at this station."
"Is this true?" demanded d.i.c.k, with a searching look.
"Yes; I wish it were not."
"How came you near this house?"
"I set out to walk to the village, and must have lost my way."
"Why did you come out of that closet?" was the next demand.
"Because I heard you abusing that little boy," said Jasper, fearlessly.
"I have a right to do what I please to my own child."
"It isn"t your child."
"What do you mean by that, you impudent young jackanapes?"
Un.o.bserved by her husband, the wife made a warning sign to Jasper not to provoke the man, whose evil pa.s.sion she so well knew.
Jasper comprehended the sign, but it did not influence him. Frank and fearless by temperament, he thought it his duty to stand between the little boy and this ruffian"s brutality. Still he appreciated the woman"s kindness, and resolved to bear it in mind. Indeed, he saw that she was rather to be pitied than blamed. Her natural instincts were good, but she was under the control of a bad man.
"I heard what you were saying," said Jasper.
"You heard?"
"Yes, while I was in the closet."
"What did you hear, you young scoundrel?" demanded the ruffian.
"Enough to satisfy me that you have stolen this boy from his parents."
"It"s a lie!"
"No; it is the truth. I felt sure of it before, and now I know it. You took him in order to extort money from his friends."
"Well," said the ruffian, defiantly, "what if I did? Have you anything to say against it?"
"Yes," said Jasper.
"I shall have to wring your neck by and by," muttered d.i.c.k. "Well, go on. Spit out what you"ve got to say."
"I say it"s a cruel wrong to the parents," said Jasper, boldly, "and to the child also. But you make it worse when you try to abuse the boy."
"Come, boy, if you care so much for the brat, suppose you take his place, and take the beating I was going to give him," suggested the ruffian, mockingly.
"I would rather suffer than have him suffer," said Jasper, quietly; "but perhaps you will change your mind when you hear what I have to say."
"Oh, you are going to beg off!" sneered the ruffian, with a look of satisfaction. "I thought you"d come to your senses."
"You are mistaken as to my intention. I want to speak to you about your sister--formerly Mrs. Thorne."
"What do you know about her?" asked the man, in extreme astonishment.
"A good deal. She is my step-mother."
"What! Are you the son of the man she married?" asked d.i.c.k, eagerly.
"I am Jasper Kent."
"That"s the name. So she sent you out to me, did she? That"s better than I thought She hasn"t forgotten her brother, after all."
"No; you are mistaken," said Jasper. "She never so much as told me she had a brother."
d.i.c.k looked disappointed. Then, with sudden suspicion, he said, roughly:
"I believe you are lying. This Jasper Kent is rich--the heir of two-thirds of his father"s property. You say you are penniless."
"That is true. Both stories are true. I am my father"s princ.i.p.al heir, but your sister is my guardian. She has treated me in such a way that I left the house."
"Ran away, eh?"
"No, I gave her full notice of what I should do. I told her that if I were decently treated I would stay, but if she continued to insult me, and give the preference in all things to her own boy, Nicholas, I would go away."
"You haven"t been such a fool as to go off and leave all your property in her hands?"
"I shall come in possession of it when I am twenty-one. Till then I will try to support myself."
"Come, boy, you"re plucky. I"m glad you came, after all. I want to hear more about my sister"s affairs. Come down stairs, and we"ll talk."
d.i.c.k appeared suddenly to have forgotten his animosity. He became even friendly in his manner, as he gave our hero this invitation.
"Old woman," said he, addressing his wife, "can"t you rake up something for this boy to eat? I dare say he is hungry."
"I don"t think we"ve got anything more in the house."
"I"ll go out directly and get something. Come down, boy, I want to ask you a few more questions."
They went down stairs, followed by the wife. She was happily relieved by the unexpected good understanding between her husband and Jasper.
"Now tell me," said d.i.c.k, eagerly, when they were in the lower room, "how much property has my sister got?"