Michael looked at him sharply, and seemed relieved by this remark. He evidently thought that all was well and safe, and heard Durham read the will with closed eyes. Then, raising himself on his elbow, he signed his name with apparent difficulty. It was wonderfully like the signature of Bernard. Miss Plantagenet and Maria appended their signatures as witnesses. Then Durham put the will into an envelope and prepared to go down. Michael stopped him.
"Mark," he said, using the name Bernard usually called the lawyer by, "don"t you think I am looking better?"
"I think you are very ill," said Durham, gently.
"But you don"t think I"ll die?"
"I hope not. With nursing you may get better."
Michael"s face a.s.sumed an expression of terror. "I won"t die," he moaned, sinking back. "I want to get well and enjoy myself."
"Hush! hush!" said Miss Berengaria, folding the clothes round him, "no more of this unhealthy talk. You will get well."
With Durham they left the room while Maria remained to attend on the patient. "Well," said Durham, in a low voice, "you see he expects to get well, now that he has signed the will. I daresay he will disappear. The body of Bernard will be found, and Michael will share the estate with Beryl."
"I don"t think so," said Miss Plantagenet, grimly. "Beryl will now murder this poor reptile, and take all the money to himself."
"I fear his expectations will be disappointed," said the lawyer, dryly.
CHAPTER XX
A CONFESSION
At the request of Miss Berengaria, Durham stopped to dinner; but not even the necessity of keeping Julius in a fool"s paradise could make the old lady extend the invitation to him. Beryl did not mind. He knew perfectly well that he was no favorite with Miss Plantagenet, and often wondered why she was so polite to him. A scoundrel himself, Julius was always suspicious of others, and constantly strove to learn why Miss Berengaria, whose honest character he knew, displayed such courtesy towards him. Then he thought it was because Bernard being in her house she was afraid lest he should be arrested through the instrumentality of his cousin should not tact be shown. Julius departed quite satisfied in his own mind that he had solved the problem of Miss Plantagenet"s behavior. Had he known the real reason he would not have gone away so complacently.
Before departing, Julius saw Jerry and told him--amongst other things--that he would have to leave Miss Plantagenet because of his having meddled with matters which did not concern him. During the interview Miss Berengaria came along and the matter was explained to her. She refused to allow Beryl to interfere.
"Mind your own precious business, young man," she said. "I am quite able to look after the boy myself."
"But he has behaved badly," urged Julius, meekly.
"So he has, and I"d give him a good whipping. However, I am not going to dismiss him for this. Jerry, go to the kitchen and mind your P"s and Q"s, or I"ll know the reason why. And now, Mr. Beryl"--the old lady dropped a grim curtsey--"good-bye."
Julius departed smiling and in no wise offended at the grimness of Miss Berengaria. "I"ll soon be able to do without the lot of them," he thought, as he walked to the railway station, "once the estate is in my possession, and I"ll keep away from this place. Lucy will have to turn out of the Hall, as I won"t have her stopping, after the way in which she has treated me. I believe she is in love with that bounder of a Conniston. However," he added enigmatically, "I know my own knowing."
He did not know Durham"s, however, and would have been considerably agitated had he learned what that gentleman said to the two ladies after his departure. Not only to them but to Lord Conniston himself. That young gentleman arrived with Lucy shortly before dinner. Lucy had come over to the meal, and Conniston, on his way back to Bernard at the castle, thought he would drop in. Of course, as the astute lover intended, he was asked to dinner.
The meal pa.s.sed off excellently, as everyone was in good spirits. The lawyer had hinted that Bernard would soon be free, and promised to tell the company all that he had discovered after dinner. When the meal was ended they all went back to the drawing-room and sat round the solicitor, who commenced his recital. Prior to starting, Miss Berengaria went up to see Michael, and returned stating that he was much better. "I believe he will get well," she said.
"Of course," observed the lawyer, ironically, "the comedy is nearly at an end. The will has been signed. Now Michael will disappear to allow Beryl to get the estates."
"He will have to supply a corpse then," said Conniston, coolly.
"Oh, I daresay he will," rejoined Durham, shrugging. "After the disappearance of Michael I know exactly what will happen. A body much decomposed will be found in the Thames, and will be recognized by Julius as that of Bernard"s. Any corpse will do, so long as the face cannot be recognized."
"Drat the man!" said Miss Berengaria, emphatically. "You can"t get a corpse without murdering someone, and I should think that Beryl creature has had enough of that sort of work."
"Oh, but Julius did not kill Sir Simon," said Lucy, with dismay. "He was at the theatre with me and Mrs. Webber."
"So I believe," said Durham, dryly; "but tell me, Miss Randolph, did he leave you at all during the play?"
"Not till the last act," said Lucy. "Then he went to get something to drink, and returned before the end of the play to take us away."
"How long was he absent?"
"Nearly half an hour. He said he had met a friend and had been talking to him."
"Ah! Very clever of him. Well," said Durham, looking round, "I have something to tell you all. We are friends of Bernard"s, are we not?"
"Certainly," said Miss Berengaria, sharply, "and I know what you are going to tell us. This Beryl creature murdered Sir Simon when he was away from the theatre."
"Impossible!" said Lucy and Alice in one breath.
"He could scarcely have done it in half an hour," said Conniston.
"But he did for all that," said Durham. "Remember, the Curtain Theatre is only ten minutes" walk from Crimea Square. Beryl could easily slip round and strangle Sir Simon--as he did."
"I knew it," cried Miss Berengaria, triumphantly. "Tell us all about it, Durham. Aha! we"ll see that reptile dancing on nothing."
"Oh, aunt!" said Alice, turning pale.
"Miss Plantagenet," remonstrated Lucy, "don"t speak like that. I do not like Julius, and broke my engagement. I think he is tricky, and has no principles, but I don"t think he would----"
"Yes, he would," contradicted the old lady, taking a pinch of snuff.
"Bah! don"t talk to me. Liar and rogue, murderer and thief are written all over him. My dear girls, the man is a danger to society. I want to see him hanged. He would have hanged Bernard."
"That"s true enough," said Conniston; "but for the sake of the family, I don"t want to see Julius hanged. So long as he tells the truth and lets Bernard take his place in society I don"t care."
"He won"t let Bernard take his place in society," insisted Miss Berengaria, quietly. "I daresay I am vindictive, but that young reptile--ugh!" She shuddered and took another pinch of snuff.
"Are you sure he is guilty?" asked Lucy, timidly.
"Quite sure," said Durham, gravely. "I have evidence," and he produced a handkerchief.
"Tell us all about it, Durham," said Miss Plantagenet, briskly. "The sooner we learn the truth the better. I am getting very tired of this connection with the Police Court. I have read detective novels," added the old lady, emphatically, "and I never liked them. To have one in real life and under my respectable roof is more than I can bear. Durham, you have an hour before you need catch your train. Tell us all. Then you can clear out, and you, Conniston, can go also. Lucy, I shall send Jerry back to the Hall with you."
"No, please not, Jerry," said Lucy.
"He is a scamp," replied Miss Berengaria, after a pause. "Well--well, we shall see. Meantime, freeze our blood, Durham."
This the lawyer proceeded to amidst a dead silence. No one interrupted him until his recital was ended. To make things clear, he narrated his discoveries from the very beginning, and recounted his interview with Mrs. Gilroy, with Tolomeo and with Beryl. At the end of his story everyone looked at one another. Lucy shuddered and hid her face, overwhelmed by the discovery of the wickedness of the man she had been engaged to. Alice was quite pale, thinking of the nets in which Bernard had been caught, and which were now on the eve of being broken, that he might escape. Conniston said a word under his breath not exactly fitted for the drawing-room, but which was overheard by Miss Berengaria and approved by that lady.
"Thank you, Conniston," she said, taking a pinch of snuff with relish.
"Never tell me that I am not a judge of character. I knew that scamp was the murderer ages ago. I said so. Now"--she addressed Durham with a suddenness which made him jump--"what"s to be done?"