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Updated: May 13, 2025
By pressing the various points we learned that Fendihook was an old client of the house. During Mrs. Considine's residence he had been touring in America. It had been his habit to go and come without much ceremonial. As for Liosha, she had given up her rooms, paid her bill and departed with her trunks. "When did she give notice to leave you?"
"I told you you would like it. Everybody does," said Liosha. "Ah, Barbara, dear!" She ran up the stairs to meet her. We followed. Mr. Fendihook was presented. I noticed, with a little shock, that he had kept on his gloves. "Very kind of you to let me come down, madam. I thought a bit of a blow would do our fair friend good."
Ras Fendihook, who might swagger into the town from his swagger hotel on the plage, we carried out Jaffery's proposal, hired an automobile and drove to Etretat.
Even I had heard of this Bohemian confraternity; and I explained with a learned inaccuracy that evoked a semi-circular grin on the pink, fleshy face of Mr. Ras Fendihook. "Ouf! Thank goodness!" said Barbara as the two-seater scuttered away down the drive. "Yes, indeed," said Doria. Jaffery shook his fist at the disappearing car. "One of these days, I'll break his infernal neck!"
As we emerged into a more spacious thoroughfare, suddenly from a gaudy column at the corner flared the name of Ras Fendihook. I caught the heading of the affiche: "Music-Hall-Eldorado." Part of the mystery was solved. Jaffery had been right in his deduction that he had left London on a professional engagement; but we had not thought of an engagement out of England.
Bathed, shaved, changed, refreshed by the good café au lait, gladdened by the sunshine and smugly satisfied with our morning's work, quite a different Hilary Freeth sat with Jaffery on the terrace from the sleepless wreck he had awakened two hours before. My urbane dismissal of Ras Fendihook lingered suave in my memory.
Neither there nor at adjoining Southsea could we find a sign of the Variety Star, Ras Fendihook, and still less of the obscure Liosha. We dined at a Southsea hotel. We dined very well. On that I insisted without much expenditure of nervous force. Jaffery rails at me for a Sybarite and what not, but I have never seen him refuse viands on account of succulency or wine on account of flavour.
"I said you would make a fool of yourself one of these days if I didn't play dragon," he said, at a sudden halt. "I've come to play dragon with a vengeance." He marched on Fendihook. "Now you." "How d'ye do, old cock? Didn't expect you here," he said jauntily. "Don't be insolent," replied Jaffery in a remarkably quiet tone. "You know very well why I'm here." "Jaff Chayne " Liosha began.
"I've got the Daily Telegraph here," said Barbara. She fetched it from her room, in the earthquake-stricken condition to which she, as usual, had reduced it, and after earnest search among the ruins disinterred the theatrical advertisement page. The attractions at the Atrium were set out fully; but the name of Ras Fendihook did not appear. "I'm right," said Jaffery. "The brute's not in town.
Fendihook had been discoursing irrepressibly on the Bohemian advantages of widowhood to a quivering Doria, and advanced to meet her, a flushed and bright-eyed Juno. "Would you like me to bring Ras Fendihook here again?" "Tell her straight," said Jaffery. Even Susan, looking from one to the other, would have been conscious of storms. I took her hand.
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