In his apprehensions the Jew no longer included Chakra: for he was now under the belief that the dark deed would be accomplished by the Spanish a.s.sa.s.sins; and that to _steel_, not _poison_, would the Custos yield up his life.
Even should Cynthia have succeeded in administering the deadly dose--a probability on which he no longer needed to rely--even should the Custos succ.u.mb to poison, the myal-man was not to be feared. There was no danger of such a confederate declaring himself. As for Cynthia, the Jew had never dealt directly with her; and therefore she was without power to implicate him in the h.e.l.lish contract.
"I musht take some shteps," said he, rising from his chair, and making a feint towards retiring to his chamber, as if to adjust his dress. "What ish besht to be done? Let me think," he added, pausing near the door, and standing in an att.i.tude of reflection; "yesh! yesh! that"s it! I musht send a messensher to Mount Welcome. Some one can go on an excushe of bishness. It will look strange, since we"re such bad neighboursh of late? No matter for that. The Cushtos is gone, I hope; and Rafener can send the message to Mishter Trusty. That will bring ush newsh. Here, Rafener!" continued he, calling to his overseer, who, cart-whip in hand, was moving through the court below, "I wan"t ye, Mishter Rafener!"
Ravener, uttering a grunt to signify that he had heard the summons, stepped up to the stairway of the verandah; and stood silently waiting to know for what he was wanted.
"Hash you any bishness about which you could send a messenger to Mishter Trusty--to Mount Welcome, I mean?"
"Humph! There"s business a plenty for that. Them consarned hogs of the Custos has got into our corn-patch up the valley, and played pitch and toss with the young plants. Ye must get damages for it."
"That ish right--that ish right."
"Humph! You won"t say it"s right when once you"ve seen the mess they"ve made. We"ll have a sorry show at crop time, I tell ye."
"Neffer mind that--we"ll have an action. Ishe not let it pa.s.s; but joosh now I hash other bishness on hand. You send a messensher to Mishter Trusty, and tell him about it. And, harksh you, Mishter Rafener! I want this messensher to be dishcreet. I want him to find out whether the Cushtos ish at home--without making a direct ashking about it. I have heard that he ish going on a shourney; and I want to know if he hash set out yet. You undershtands me?"
"All right," replied Ravener, with an air that betokened comprehension, "All right! I"ll send a fellow that"ll get an answer to that question without asking it. Blue d.i.c.k can do that."
"Ah! true, Blue d.i.c.k ish the one! And, harksh you, Mishter Rafener!
tell him to try if he can see the mulatta wench, Cynthy."
"What is he to say to her?"
"He ish to tell her to come ofer here, if she hash an opportunity. I wants to shpeak with _her_. But, mind ye, Mishter Rafener! d.i.c.k ish to be careful what he saysh and doesh. He musht talk with the girl _only in whishpers_."
"I"ll instruct him in all that," replied the overseer, in a tone of confidence. "You want him to go now?"
"Thish minute--thish very minute. I hash a reason for being in a hurry.
Send him off as soon ash you can."
Ravener, without further parley, walked off to dispatch his messenger; and a few minutes after he had gone out of the court, that yellow "complected" Mercury, known by the _sobriquet_ of "Blue d.i.c.k," was seen "streaking" it along the path which conducted from the Jew"s penn to the mansion of Mount Welcome.
Volume Three, Chapter III.
THE MYSTERIOUS ABSENCE.
The brief conversation between Jessuron and his overseer had taken place _sotto voce_: as it was not desirable that it should be overheard by any one--much less by the nephew of him who was its chief subject, and who was supposed to be suspended in a hammock not ten paces from the spot.
The hammock, however, was not visible from the front stairway--being hung in that part of the verandah that extended along the other side of the house.
On the departure of Ravener from his presence, the Jew proceeded with his original intention--to put his person in order for the day.
His toilette did not take long. After a very brief absence within his room, he reappeared on the gallery in the same pocketed blue coat, breeches, and tops, that served him for all purposes and occasions. The coat was b.u.t.toned over his breast, the whitey-brown beaver once more upon his head, and the goggles adjusted on the knife-back ridge of his nose. It was evident he intended a stroll. This was all the more certain as he had regained the umbrella--which had dropped from him during sleep--and, holding it in his grasp, stood by the top of the stairway, as if on the eve of setting forth.
Whither was he going? For what purpose, so early?
His muttered soliloquy declared his design.
"It musht be to-day--yesh, I musht get them married thish very day; and before any newsh can come. The report of the Cushtos" death might shpoil all my plans. Who knowsh what the young man might do, if he hash only a hint of hish goot luck? After all, may be, Shoodith ish not so shure of him? She hash said something last night. Ha! it musht be thish day. It is no ushe going to the rector of the parish. He ish the Cushtos" friend, and might make some obsheckshun. That won"t do--s"help me, no! I musht go to the other. Hee"sh poor, and won"t sthand shilly-shally. Besides, hish knot would be shoost as hard to looshe as if it wash tied by the Bishop of Shamaica. He"ll do; and if _he_ won"t, then I knowsh one who will--for monish; ay, anything for monish!"
After this soliloquy he was about setting foot upon one of the steps with the intention of descending, when a thought appeared to strike him; and turning away from the stair, he walked with shuffling gentleness along the gallery, towards that part of the verandah where the hammock was suspended.
"I supposhe the young shentleman is shtill ashleep. Shentleman, indeed!
_now_ he ish all that, or will be the next time he goesh to shleep.
Well, if he ish, I mushn"t dishturb him. Rich shentlemen mushn"t have their shlumbers interrupted. _Ach_!"
The exclamation escaped from his lips, as, on rounding the angle of the verandah, he came within sight of the hammock.
""Tish empty, I declare! He"sh early astir! In hish room, I supposhe?"
_Sans ceremonie_, the Jew kept on along the gallery, until he had arrived in front of his book-keeper"s private apartment. There he stopped, looking inward.
The door was ajar--almost wide open. He could see the greater portion of the interior through the door; the rest of it through the jalousies.
There was no one in the room--either sitting, standing, or moving about!
"Mashter Vochan! Are you there?"
The interrogatory was put rather by way of confirming his observation: for he saw there was no one inside.
"Where are you, Mashter Herbert?" continued he, repeating the interrogatory in an altered form--at the same time craning his neck into the apartment, and glancing all around it. "Ash I live, it"sh empty, like the hammock! He musht have gone out. Yesh. Hish hat"s not here-- his cloak ish not here; and I see no gun. He alwaysh kept hish gun joosh there. How hash he pa.s.sed me without my hearing his foot? I shleeps so ash I can hear a cat shtealin" over the floor! Hash he gone by the shtairway at all? Ash I live, no! Blesh my soul! there is a track where somebody musht have shumped over the railing down into the garden! S"help me, it ish his track! There"sh no other but him to have made it. What the deffil ish the young fellow after this morning? I hope there ish nothing wrong in it."
On missing the young Englishman out of his hammock and room, the penn-keeper felt at first no particular uneasiness. His _protege_ had, no doubt, gone out for a stroll in the woods. He had taken his gun along with him, to have a shot at some early bird looking for the early worm. He had done so many a time before--though never at so early an hour.
The hour, however, was not enough of itself to cause any surprise to his patron; nor even the fact of his having leaped over the verandah railing. He might have seen the owner of the house asleep in his chair near the head of the stairway; and, not wishing to disturb him, had chosen the other mode of exit. There was nothing in all this to cause uneasiness.
Nor would the Jew have thought anything of it had it not been for some other circ.u.mstances which quickly came under his notice--guiding him to the suspicion that something _might be amiss_.
The first of these circ.u.mstances was that Herbert, although having taken his gun along with him, had left behind his shot-belt and powder-flask!
Both were there in his room, hanging upon their peg. They did not escape the sharp glance of the Jew, who at once began to draw conclusions from their presence.
If the young man had gone out on a shooting excursion, it was strange that he did not take his ammunition along with him!
Perhaps, however, he had seen some sort of game near the house, and, in his hurry to get a shot at it, had gone off hastily--trusting to the two charges which his gun contained. In that case he would not go far, and in a few minutes might be expected back.
A few minutes pa.s.sed, and a great many minutes--until a full hour had transpired--and still nothing was heard or seen of the book-keeper, though messengers had been dispatched in search of him, and had quartered all the ground for half a mile around the precincts of the penn.
Jessuron--whose matutinal visit to the minister had been postponed by the occurrence--began to look grave.
"It ish shtrange," said he, speaking to his daughter, who had now arisen, and was far from appearing cheerful; "shtrange he should go abroad in thish fashion, without shaying a word to either of ush!"
Judith made no reply: though her silence could not conceal a certain degree of chagrin, from which she was evidently suffering. Perhaps she had even more reason than the "rabbi" to suspect there was something amiss?
Certainly, something disagreeable--a misunderstanding at least, had arisen between her and Herbert on the preceding day. Her speech had already given some slight hint of it; but much more her manner, which, on the night before, and now unmistakably in the morning, betrayed a mixture of melancholy and suppressed indignation.
It did not add to the equanimity of her temper, when the house wench-- who was unslinging the hammock in which Herbert had slept--announced it to contain two articles scarce to be expected in such a place--a cocoa-nut and a tobacco-pipe!
The pipe could not have belonged to Herbert Vaughan: he never smoked a pipe; and as for the cocoa-nut, it had evidently been plucked from the tree standing near. The trunk of the palm exhibited scratches as if some one had climbed up it, and above could be seen the freshly-torn peduncle, where the fruit had been wrenched from its stalk!