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As the darkness came, Neale, now getting desperate for want of food, was suddenly startled by two sounds which, coming abruptly at almost the same time, made him literally jump. One the first was a queer thump, thump, thump, which seemed to be both close at hand and yet a thousand miles away. The second was Joseph Chestermarke's voice in the garden outside heard clearly through the open window.
"With your leave, I'd like to try an experiment." "What experiment?" demanded Polke. Starmidge pointed to the ten thousand pound cheque, which was still lying on the table. "I'd like to take that cheque across to Chestermarke's Bank, and show it to the partners," he answered. "Good heavens! why?" exclaimed Polke. "I thought you didn't want anybody to know about it."
"And I should say, Starmidge, that it was private business brought him down here if he's the man, as he certainly seems to be. But whose?" Starmidge turned again to the clerk. "You've a good memory, I can see," he said. "Now, did you ever hear Mr. Hollis mention the name of Horbury?" "Never!" replied Simmons. "Did you ever hear him speak of Chestermarke's Bank?" asked Starmidge. "No never!
Neale! he knows that dead man!" Neale, startled and amazed by this sudden outburst on the part of a man whom up to that time he had taken to be unusually cool-headed and phlegmatic, did not immediately answer. He was watching the Ellersdeane constable, who was running after Gabriel Chestermarke's rapidly retreating figure.
"And there is Ellersdeane itself, right away in the distance, amongst its trees. There! where the moonlight catches it. Now let your eye follow that far line of wood, over the tops of the trees about Ellersdeane village do you see where the moonlight shines on another high roof? That's Gabriel Chestermarke's place the Warren." "So he and Lord Ellersdeane are neighbours!" remarked Betty.
Miss Betty Fosdyke, attired in her smartest, was just entering the portals of Chestermarke's Bank. Mrs. Carswell herself opened the door of the bank-house in response to Miss Fosdyke's ring. She started a little at sight of the visitor, and her eyes glanced involuntarily and, as it seemed to Betty, with something of uneasiness, at the side-door which led into the Chestermarkes' private parlour.
"Now, I had no objection to this. I had not told you of it, Neale, but I had already determined to resign my position as manager at Chestermarke's. I had grown tired of it. I was going to resign as soon as I returned from my holiday.
Gabriel Chestermarke!" he said. "Entered my stage-door eleven-thirty last night? Here! describe him!" Easleby glanced at Starmidge. And Starmidge, as if he were describing a picture, gave a full and accurate account of Mr. Gabriel Chestermarke's appearance from head to foot. The lessee suddenly jumped from his chair, walked over to a door, opened it, and looked into an inner room.
"The true position of the case is that your lordship handed your property to Horbury as a friend, not as manager of Chestermarke's Bank." "Then let me ask you, what are you going to do?" said the Earl. "I mean, not about my affair, but about finding your manager?" Gabriel looked at his nephew: Joseph shook his head. "So far," said Joseph, "we have not quite considered that.
Of course, being right across the room from them, I couldn't catch a word that was said, but she seemed to be explaining something to him the whole time, and I could see he was surprised more than once." "It must have been something uncommonly surprising to make him show signs of surprise!" muttered Starmidge, who had a vivid recollection of Gabriel Chestermarke's granite countenance.
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