The Protector Part 28

Then he remembered that the girl had been offered to him and he had refused the gift. He wondered how he had exerted the necessary strength of will, for he was conscious that admiration, respect, pity, had now changed and melted into sudden pa.s.sion. His blood tingled and, as it happened, no change of his expression was lost upon his companion.

Laying a check upon his thoughts, he resumed a desultory conversation with Jessie, though he betrayed himself several times during it, and at length she let him go. It was, however, some time before he secured a place beside Evelyn. He was now quiet and self-contained.

"Nairn promised me a surprise this evening, but it has exceeded all my expectations," he said. "How are your people?"

Evelyn informed him that their health was satisfactory, and added, watching him the while: "Gerald sent his best remembrances."

"Ah!" said Vane in a casual manner, "I'm glad to have them."

Evelyn was now convinced that Mabel had been correct in concluding that he had a.s.sisted Gerald financially, though she was aware that nothing would induce either of the men to acquaint her with the fact.

"I understood from Mrs. Nairn that you were away in the bush," she said.

He turned and regarded her steadily. "That was the case, and I'm shortly going off again. Perhaps it's fortunate that I may be away some time. It will leave you more at ease."

The last remark was more of a question than an a.s.sertion, and Evelyn knew the man could be direct. She also esteemed candour.

"No," she said; "I wouldn't wish you to think that--and I wouldn't like to believe that I had anything to do with driving you away."

Vane saw a faintly warmer tone show through the clear pallor of her skin; but while his heart beat faster than usual he felt that she meant just what she said and nothing more. He must proceed with caution, which was, on the whole, foreign to him; and shortly afterwards he left her.

When he had gone, Evelyn sat thinking about him. She had shrunk from the man in rebellious alarm when her parents would have bestowed her hand on him; but even then, and undoubtedly afterwards, she had felt that there was something in his nature which would have attracted her, had she been willing to allow it to do so. Now, though he had said nothing to rouse it, the feeling was stronger. Then she remembered with a rather curious smile her father's indignation when Vane had withdrawn from the field.

He had done this because she had appealed to his generosity, and she had been grateful to him; but, unreasonable as she admitted the faint resentment she was conscious of to be, the recollection of the fact that he had yielded to her wishes was somehow bitter.

In the meanwhile, Carroll had taken his place by Jessie's side.

"I understand you steered your comrade satisfactorily through the meeting to-day," she began.

"No," objected Carroll, "I can't claim any credit for doing so. In matters of the kind, Vane takes full control, and I'm willing to own that he drove us all, including your brother, on the course he chose."

"Then it's in other matters you exercise a little judicious pressure on the helm?"

The man looked at her in well-a.s.sumed admiration of her keenness. "I don't know how you guessed it, but I suppose it's a fact. It's, however, an open secret that Vane's now and then unguardedly ingenuous; indeed, there are respects in which he's a babe by comparison, we'll say, with either of us."

"That's rather a dubious compliment," Jessie informed him. "What do you think of Miss Chisholm? I suppose you saw a good deal of her in England?"

"I spent a month or two in her company; so did Vane. I fancy she's rather like him in several ways; and there are reasons for believing that he thinks a good deal of her."

Having watched Vane carefully when Evelyn came in, Jessie was inclined to agree with him, and she glanced round the room. One or two people were moving about and the rest were talking in little groups; but there was n.o.body very near, and she fancied that she and her companion were safe from interruption.

"What were some of the reasons?" she asked.

Carroll had expected some question of this description, and had decided to answer it plainly, because it seemed probable that Jessie would get the information out of him in one way or another. He had also another motive, which he thought a commendable one. Jessie had obviously taken a certain interest in Vane, but it could not have gone very far as yet, and Vane did not reciprocate it. The latter was, however, impulsive, while Jessie was calculating and clever, and Carroll, who was slightly afraid of her, foresaw that complications might follow any increase of friendliness between her and his comrade. He thought it would be better if she left Vane alone.

"Well," he said, "since you have asked, I'll try to tell you."

He proceeded to recount what had pa.s.sed at the Dene and Jessie listened, with an expressionless face.

"So he gave her up--because he admired her?" she said at length.

"That's my view of it," Carroll agreed.

Jessie made no comment, but he felt that she was hardly hit, which was not what he had antic.i.p.ated. He began to wonder if he had acted judiciously and he glanced about the room. It did not seem considerate to study her expression then. A few moments later she turned to him with a smile in which there was the faintest hint of strain.

"I daresay you are right; but there are one or two people I haven't spoken to," she said and moved away from him.

Some time after this Mrs. Nairn came upon Carroll standing for the moment alone. "It's no often one sees ye looking moody," she informed him. "Was Jessie no gracious?"

"That," said Carroll, smiling, "is not the difficulty. I'm an unsusceptible and somewhat inconspicuous person, not worth powder and shot, so to speak, for which I'm sometimes thankful. I believe it saves me a good deal of trouble."

"Then, is it something Vane has done that is on your mind? Doubtless, ye feel him a responsibility?"

"He's all that," Carroll confessed. "Still, you see, I've const.i.tuted myself his guardian; I don't know why, because he'd probably be very vexed if he suspected it."

"The G.o.ds give ye a good conceit o' yourself!" Mrs. Nairn exclaimed.

"I need it," said Carroll humbly. "This afternoon I let him do a most injudicious thing, and now I've done another which I fear is worse. On the whole, I think I'd better take him away to the bush. He'd be safer there."

"Ye will not, no just now," declared his hostess firmly.

Carroll made a sign of resignation. "Oh, well," he said, "if you say so, I'm quite willing to stand out and let things alone. Too many cooks are apt to spoil the kail."

Mrs. Nairn left him, but she afterwards once or twice glanced thoughtfully at Vane and Evelyn, who had once more drawn together.

CHAPTER XXII

EVELYN GOES FOR A SAIL.

It was about the middle of the morning and Vane sat in Nairn's office.

Specimens of ore lately received from the mine were scattered about a table, and Nairn had some papers in his hand.

"Weel?" he said, when Vane, after examining two or three of the stones abruptly flung them down.

"The ore's running poorer," Vane admitted. "On the other hand, I partly expected this, and there's better stuff in the reef. We're a little too high; I look for more encouraging results when we start the lower heading."

He went into details of the new operations and, when he had finished, Nairn, who had been jotting down some figures, looked up.

"Yon workings will cost a good deal," he pointed out. "Ye'll no be able to make a start until we're sure of the money."

"We ought to get it."

"A month or two ago I would have agreed with ye, but general investors are kittle cattle, and the applications for the new stock are no numerous."

"The plain English of it is that the mine is not so popular as it was,"

said Vane impatiently.