FREE BOOKS

Author's List




PREV.   NEXT  
|<   74   75   76   77   78   79   80   81   82   83   84   85   86   87   88   >>  
r Girtle at all manner of unexpected times while he was waiting for Paul Capel's return to health, and tried to get information from him, without avail. "Must have been a bit of imagination on the old man's part," said Mr Linnett. "Some of these old fellows--half-cracked, as a rule--believe that they are extremely rich. I don't know, though. Old boy was very rich. Wonderful! What a house! That young chap might very well be satisfied with what he has got." In this spirit the detective turned his attention to the doctor, approaching him with a bad feeling of weakness, and not being satisfied with the dictum of the divisional surgeon. "He laughs at it, you see, sir," said Linnett, in the doctor's consulting room; "but I'm bad." "Yes, yes. I see what is the matter with you, my man," said Heston. "I'll soon set you all right." "Lor', what humbugs doctors are," said the detective, looking at his prescription, as he went away. "I suppose I must take this stuff, though, before I go and see him again." "Curious thing, nature," said Heston, as soon as the detective had gone; "that man thinks he's ill, and there's nothing whatever the matter with him. Fancy, brought on from hard thought and work." The doctor was wiser than the detective thought; but in future visits the latter obtained a good deal of information, among which was the doctor's theory that Ramo, the old Indian servant, had not died entirely from the struggle with Charles Pillar. It was just about that time that Gerard Artis swore an oath. That old Mr Girtle took Lydia's hand gently between his, and said tenderly:-- "No, no, my child. You must not go. I am very old, and if you were to go now, it would be like taking the light out of my life. I know all; I am not blind. But wait." Lydia shook her head. "If you love him, my child, wait. It may be to save him, and you would sacrifice yourself to do that." And that Mr Linnett went out of the area of the great gloomy house, laughing to himself, and casting up his total, as he termed it. "Ha! ha! ha!" he exclaimed; "only to think of them knocking their heads about here and there, and never so much as getting warm. Detectives are all fools, so the public say. Blind as bats. They want a better class of men." He treated himself to a thoroughly good cigar, and rolled out the blue clouds of smoke as he strode along, wagging his umbrella behind him. "Always through all these y
PREV.   NEXT  
|<   74   75   76   77   78   79   80   81   82   83   84   85   86   87   88   >>  



Top keywords:
detective
 

doctor

 

Linnett

 
satisfied
 
Girtle
 
matter
 

Heston

 

information

 

thought

 

struggle


Pillar
 
Charles
 

taking

 

tenderly

 

gently

 

Gerard

 

treated

 

public

 

rolled

 

umbrella


Always
 

wagging

 

clouds

 
strode
 

Detectives

 
laughing
 
gloomy
 

casting

 

servant

 

sacrifice


termed

 

knocking

 
exclaimed
 
spirit
 

return

 
turned
 

waiting

 

dictum

 

divisional

 

surgeon


weakness

 

attention

 
approaching
 

feeling

 
fellows
 
cracked
 

health

 

Wonderful

 
extremely
 

laughs