"I forgot you don"t know him. He"s the brother of that lady we met the day you were so good as to receive us; the one who was so kind to us--Mrs. Lovick."
"I never heard of him."
"Don"t you remember how she spoke of him and that Mr. Lovick didn"t seem very nice about him? She told us that if he were to meet us--and she was so good as to intimate that it would be a pleasure to him to do so--he might give us, as she said, a tip."
Peter achieved the effort to recollect. "Yes he comes back to me. He"s an actor."
"He"s a gentleman too," said Mrs. Rooth.
"And you"ve met him, and he _has_ given you a tip?"
"As I say, he wants us to go to London."
"I see, but even I can tell you that."
"Oh yes," said Mrs. Rooth; "but _he_ says he can help us."
"Keep hold of him then, if he"s in the business," Peter was all for that.
"He"s a perfect gentleman," said Mrs. Rooth. "He"s immensely struck with Miriam."
"Better and better. Keep hold of him."
"Well, I"m glad you don"t object," she grimaced.
"Why should I object?"
"You don"t regard us as _all_ your own?"
"My own? Why, I regard you as the public"s--the world"s."
She gave a little shudder. "There"s a sort of chill in that. It"s grand, but it"s cold. However, I needn"t hesitate then to tell you that it"s with Mr. Dashwood Miriam has gone out."
"Why hesitate, gracious heaven?" But in the next breath Sherringham asked: "Where have they gone?"
"You don"t like it!" his hostess laughed.
"Why should it be a thing to be enthusiastic about?"
"Well, he"s charming and _I_ trust him."
"So do I," said Sherringham.
"They"ve gone to see Madame Carre."
"She has come back then?"
"She was expected back last week. Miriam wants to show her how she has improved."
"And _has_ she improved?"
"How can I tell--with my mother"s heart?" asked Mrs. Rooth. "I don"t judge; I only wait and pray. But Mr. Dashwood thinks she"s wonderful."
"That"s a blessing. And when did he turn up?"
"About a fortnight ago. We met Mrs. Lovick at the English church, and she was so good as to recognise us and speak to us. She said she had been away with her children--otherwise she"d have come to see us. She had just returned to Paris."
"Yes, I"ve not yet seen her. I see Lovick," Peter added, "but he doesn"t talk of his brother-in-law."
"I didn"t, that day, like his tone about him," Mrs. Rooth observed. "We walked a little way with Mrs. Lovick after church and she asked Miriam about her prospects and if she were working. Miriam said she had no prospects."
"That wasn"t very nice to me," Sherringham commented.
"But when you had left us in black darkness what _were_ our prospects?"
"I see. It"s all right. Go on."
"Then Mrs. Lovick said her brother was to be in Paris a few days and she would tell him to come and see us. He arrived, she told him and he came.
_Voila_!" said Mrs. Rooth.
"So that now--so far as _he_ is concerned--Miss Rooth has prospects?"
"He isn"t a manager unfortunately," she qualified.
"Where does he act?"
"He isn"t acting just now; he has been abroad. He has been to Italy, I believe, and is just stopping here on his way to London."
"I see; he _is_ a perfect gentleman," said Sherringham.
"Ah you"re jealous of him!"
"No, but you"re trying to make me so. The more compet.i.tors there are for the glory of bringing her out the better for her."
"Mr. Dashwood wants to take a theatre," said Mrs. Rooth.
"Then perhaps he"s our man."
"Oh if you"d help him!" she richly cried.
"Help him?"
"Help him to help us."
"We"ll all work together; it will be very jolly," said Sherringham gaily. "It"s a sacred cause, the love of art, and we shall be a happy band. Dashwood"s his name?" he added in a moment. "Mrs. Lovick wasn"t a Dashwood."
"It"s his _nom de theatre_--Basil Dashwood. Do you like it?" Mrs. Rooth wonderfully inquired.