The Imaginary Marriage Part 19

"Her--her husband!" Mr. Slotman seemed to be choking.

"You seem surprised," said Lady Linden. "Well, so was I, but it is the truth. If you are interested in Miss Meredyth, the proper person to make enquiries of is Mr. Hugh Alston, of Hurst Dormer, Suss.e.x. Now you know.

Is there anything else I can do for you?"

Slotman pa.s.sed his hand across his forehead. This was unexpected, a blow that staggered him.

"You--you mean, your ladyship means that Miss Meredyth is recently married."

"Her ladyship means nothing of the kind," said Lady Linden tartly. "I mean that Miss Meredyth has for some very considerable time been Mrs.

Hugh Alston. They were married, if you want to know--and I don't see why it should any longer be kept a secret--three years ago, in June, nineteen eighteen at Marlbury, Dorset, where my niece was at school with Miss Meredyth. Now you know all I know, and if you want any further information, apply to the husband."

"But--but," Slotman said, "I--" He was thinking. He was trying to reconcile what he had heard in his own office when he had spied on Hugh Alston and Joan, when on that occasion he had heard Hugh offer marriage to the girl as an act of atonement. How could he offer marriage if they were already married? There was something wrong, some mistake!

"But what?" snapped her ladyship, who had taken an exceeding dislike to the perspiring Mr. Slotman.

"Is your ladyship certain that they were married? I mean--" he fumbled and stammered.

Lady Linden pointed to the door. "Good afternoon!" she said. "I don't know what business it is of yours, and I don't care. All I know is that if Hugh Alston is a fool, he is not a knave, so you have my permission to retire."

Mr. Slotman retired, but it was not till some hours had pa.s.sed that he finally left the neighbourhood of Cornbridge. He had been making discreet enquiries, and he found on every side that her ladyship's story was corroborated.

For Lady Linden talked, and it was asking too much of any lady who was fond of a chat to expect her to keep silent on a matter of such interest. Lady Linden had discussed Hugh Alston's marriage with Mrs.

Pontifex, the Rector's wife, who in turn had discussed it with others.

So, little by little, the story had leaked out, and all Cornbridge knew it, and Mr. Slotman found ample corroboration of Lady Linden's story.

Not till he was in the train did Mr. Slotman begin to gather together all the threads of evidence. "I should not describe Lady Linden as a pleasant person," he decided, "still, her information will prove of the utmost value to me. On the whole I am glad I went." He felt satisfied; he had discovered all that was discoverable, so far as Cornbridge was concerned.

"Married in eighteen, June of eighteen," he muttered, "at Marlbury, Dorset. I'll bet she wasn't! She may have said she was, but she wasn't!"

He chuckled grimly. He was beginning to see through it. "I suppose she told that tale, and then it got about, and then the fellow came and offered her marriage as the only possible way out. I'd like to choke the brute!"

Slotman slept that night in London, and early the following morning he was on his way to Marlbury. He found it a little quiet country town, where information was to be had readily enough. It took him but a few minutes to discover that there was a school for young ladies, a school of repute, kept by a Miss Skinner. It was the only ladies' school in or near the town, and so Mr. Slotman made his way in that direction, and in a little time was ushered into the presence of the headmistress.

"I must apologise," he said, "for this intrusion."

Miss Skinner bowed. She was tall and thin, angular and severe, a typical headmistress, stern and unyielding.

"I am," Slotman lied, "a solicitor from London, and I am interested in a young lady who a matter of three years ago was, I believe, a pupil in this school."

"Indeed?"

"Miss Joan Meredyth," said Slotman.

"Miss Meredyth was a pupil here at the time you mention, three years ago. It was three years ago that she left."

"In June?" Slotman asked.

"I think so. Is it important that you know?"

"Very!"

"I will go and look up my books." In a few minutes Miss Skinner was back.

"Miss Meredyth left us in the June of nineteen hundred and eighteen,"

she said.

"Suddenly?"

"Somewhat--yes, suddenly. Her father was dead; she was leaving us to go to Australia."

"So that was the story," Slotman thought, "to go to Australia."

"During the time she was here, may I ask, did she have any visitors?

Did, for instance, a Mr. Hugh Alston call on her?"

"Mr. Alston, I remember the name. Certainly he called here, but not to see Miss Meredyth. He came to see Miss Marjorie Linden, who was, I fancy, distantly related to him. I am not sure, Mr. Alston certainly called several times."

"And saw Miss Meredyth?"

"I think not. I have no reason to believe that he did. Miss Linden and Miss Meredyth were close friends, and of course Miss Linden may have introduced him. It is quite possible."

"Thank you!" said Slotman. He had found out all that he wanted to know, yet not quite.

For the next few hours Philip Slotman was a busy man. He went to the church and looked up the register. No marriage such as he looked for had taken place between Hugh Alston and Joan Meredyth in June, nineteen eighteen, nor any other month immediately before or after. No marriage had taken place at the local Registrar's office. But he was not done yet. Six miles from Marlbury was Morchester, a far larger and more important town. Thither went Philip Slotman and pursued his enquiries with a like result.

Neither at Marlbury, nor at Morchester had any marriage been registered in the name of Hugh Alston and Joan Meredyth in the year nineteen eighteen; and having discovered that fact beyond doubt, Philip Slotman took train for London.

CHAPTER XX

"WHEN I AM NOT WITH YOU"

A fortnight had pa.s.sed since Johnny Everard's first visit to Starden, and during that time he had been again and yet again. He had never taken Ellice with him since that first time.

Two days after the first visit he had driven Constance over, and Constance and Joan Meredyth had become instant friends.

"You'll come again and often; it is lonely here," Joan had said. "I mean, not lonely for me, that would be ungrateful to Helen, but I know she is very fond of you, and she will like you to come as often as possible, you and your brother."

"Con," Johnny said as he drove her home that evening, "don't you think we might run to a little car, just a cheap two-seater? It would be so useful. Look, we could run over to Starden in less than half an hour. We can be there and back in an hour if we wanted to, and Helen would be so jolly glad, don't you think?"

Constance smiled to herself.

"We haven't much money now, Johnny," she said. "Last year's hops were--awful!"

"They are going to be ripping this year. I've got that blight down all right," he said cheerily.