CHAPTER XIV.

_TWO INTERVIEWS._

One equal temper of heroic hearts, Made weak by time and fate, but strong in will To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield.

Mr. Robinson was virtuously indignant and highly incensed at the turn matters had taken. He talked loudly at home and among his religious friends--who were accustomed to small roughnesses in his style, but attributed them to the manly nature of his Christianity--about the young jackanapes, another of your fine gentlemen, who impudently meddled with what could not possibly concern him; but in presence of Arthur Forrest's young chivalry he was rather more subdued than usual. Not that he appeared to be crestfallen--that would have been a tacit acknowledgment of feeling himself to be in the wrong: he only took the matter as was becoming to a man and a Christian to take it, laying himself down ostentatiously for his young friend to tread upon, but bringing in from time to time unexpected hints about the youthfulness of the course of conduct he was pursuing, about the necessity for common sense in dealing with the world, and the certainty he felt that sooner or later his young friend would find out his mistake.

Arthur left him with no victory but such as was represented by the casket, which Mr. Robinson had willingly surrendered.

The lawyer assured Arthur Forrest, showing his teeth and smiling pleasantly, that when he knew more of the world he would be aware that what Mrs. Grey had done was a thing done every day. He could show--and he opened drawer after drawer to substantiate his statement--pounds' worth of jewelry left, and left wisely, by ladies who had no need for it for the moment, in the keeping of their solicitor. If Mrs. Grey had ceased to repose confidence in him--he shrugged his shoulders to prove his entire indifference--he could only say that the sooner she took charge of her own valuables the better, both for her and for himself. Certainly, she had acted rather strangely after all the trouble he had taken in the affair for very inadequate remuneration--and _his_ time, as all the world knew, was valuable; but one must not expect gratitude in this world. He only trusted--for he could not help still taking a certain interest in the matter--that everything would be far better managed.

Arthur left the office, in fact, with a very bewildered feeling about his brain. He had known Mr. Robinson well by rumor, but hitherto he had not been brought into very close contact with him. This interview shook him considerably. He was at a loss to account for the strange mixture in the man--his apparent frankness and bonhomie, his real selfishness and hypocrisy. Before men and women know the world well they find it difficult to understand mixtures. People, with them, are ranged into two vast classes, each class bearing written on its brow in legible characters the legend of its belonging. The good are in their imagination all frankness, courage, ingenuity; the bad have the malignant scowl of a villain in a play. They are totally unprepared for the frank address, the words of common sense and true wisdom, which men whose hearts are bad have picked up in intercourse with their betters, and which they use daily in the world as a kind of current coin whose worth is incalculable. Mr. Robinson had plenty of this, and it somewhat staggered Arthur. But the recollection of his friend strengthened him, and he cast aside as unworthy all the lawyer's hints.

Quietly he requested Mr. Robinson to use neither time nor money in the effort to find Mr. Grey, and to prepare for having Mrs. Grey's affairs most thoroughly looked into, as she had friends who would see justice done to her. The lawyer's parting shrug and voluble assurance of entire indifference were lost on the young man. He had a more satisfactory interview later in the same day. His own man of business, Mr. Golding, was shrewd and well versed in character. He knew where his own interests lay, and when it was possible he guarded them carefully; but he was actually--what Mr. Robinson made a loud profession of being--a God-fearing, conscientious man. He, or the firm he represented, and which had succeeded to him from his father, had taken charge of the property inherited by Arthur Forrest for some generations. Naturally, then, he took a deep interest in it, and it was a matter of some moment to him that the young heir should place the same confidence in the firm as his father had done before him.

When, therefore, he came with his tale--a tale that to the man of the world sounded rather romantic and far-fetched--Mr. Golding listened patiently. He did not fail to represent to his client that the business on which he was embarking was of a highly delicate nature; that action of his might very possibly be looked upon as an impertinent interference; that in any case his success--in one at least of the objects he had set before him--was extremely doubtful. Not that there could be much difficulty in finding Mr. Grey. If he should still be above ground he would be found; if not, the fact could easily be ascertained. The question was, whether, in the first place, there had not been some motive beyond that imagined for his long absence (it was difficult for a hard-headed man of business like Mr. Golding even to imagine how any man could behave so impulsively in such an emergency), and in this case his return was certainly improbable; whether, in the second place, should he have left England solely on this account, his belief in his wife's unworthiness would not be too deeply rooted to yield to a few enthusiastic words; whether, in the third place, granted even that his mood toward his wife had softened in the interval, he would not resent the intervention of a stranger, and be inclined to feel annoyance at a stranger's intimate knowledge of his affairs.

To all this Arthur only answered, "I know there are difficulties: I am prepared for them. I will set to work with great prudence, but set to work I _must_. The question is this, Do you feel inclined to help me?"

The shrewd man of law saw that his young client was in earnest, and he demurred no longer. "I will help you willingly," he said. "I only wished to prepare you for certain difficulty and very probable disappointment. And now to work. This gentleman was last heard of at St. Petersburg?"

"Yes. He left there ill and evidently dissatisfied. His friends feared he had some intention of committing suicide."

The lawyer's lip curled ever so slightly: "The ladies were in want of a bit of sensation. Probably Mr. Maurice Grey is forgotten by this time. More likely, I should say, late hours and a gay life had knocked him up. There is no city where a man can live faster than in St. Petersburg. He left, probably, to get a little rest, and would not write for fear of another pressing invitation. But he can't live on air, wherever he may be. Can you tell me if he derives his income from property in England?"

"I believe he does, and that he communicates from time to time with his solicitor in London. I have _his_ name too. But I believe he is close, or has been recommended to secrecy by his client."

Arthur passed a card to Mr. Golding, who glanced at it and gave a sudden exclamation: "_That_ Grey! Why, I know all about him. You have a mortgage on his property, Mr. Forrest, and a very first-rate security it is, too; we could not wish for better. I will write at once to my friend Edwards appointing an interview. There's a little matter of business between us, so he will suspect nothing. Then I shall draw him on to Mr. Grey. He has once or twice entertained me with an account of his eccentricities. You must not be _too_ sanguine. I believe Mr. Grey has a kind of objection to letting any one know his true address; so, even upon the authority of Edwards, I may be sending you off on a wild-goose chase. However, if we hear something of his whereabouts, we shall have less difficulty in tracing him."

"How strange," said Arthur meditatively, "that I should have had something to do with him all this time without knowing it! But about the other matter, Golding--the child?"

"There I disagree with you entirely. That any man can have taken so stupid a revenge is really absurd, even to imagine. No: Mrs. Grey's first impression was correct. Her husband wished to overlook the education of his daughter. He carried out his purpose in a most unwarrantable manner; but evidently the man is soured--_I_ should say scarcely responsible. Perhaps he sent an agent to secure the child, and this would account for the gray hair and foreign appearance. More probably still, a good deal of this was put on for effect by your informant."

"I don't think so," returned Arthur. "It is just possible, as you say, that Mr. Grey deputed some one to fetch his child, but it would be a very strange kind of proceeding."

"Not half so strange as your foreigner encumbering himself with such a charge out of mere jealousy. However, all this remains to be proved. Southampton, you say? I will send a clerk there to make inquiries--a sharp fellow; he has often done me good service in this line. He shall start this afternoon. It's a pity it has been delayed so long. If Robinson had understood his duty, he would have set this search on foot at once. In eight days no one knows what can be done with a child. However, I have great hope of a clue from Southampton. As you say, they must be conspicuous travellers. And now, my dear sir, you are interesting yourself very much about your neighbors, but are you aware that in three weeks' time we shall have to give an account of our proceedings during your minority? It is quite necessary that you should make some provision for the transaction of your business, especially as, if you follow out your present plans, your whereabouts for the next few months may be doubtful."

"I have thought of it," replied Arthur gravely, "and I hope I am not totally unaware of the responsibilities of my position. For the present, however, I shall ask you to continue to take the entire management. When this affair which occupies me so much is over, I shall be ready to receive your statement, which I know will be satisfactory in every way." He smiled as he spoke and held out his hand.

Mr. Golding was surprised as well as touched. It was pleasant to the man of business--whose labor in the cause of young Forrest's family had been to a certain degree a labor of love--to find his client able to take a practical, common-sense view of his position, and to appreciate his upright and assiduous care.

He smiled in return, and shook the young man's hand warmly: "You gratify me, my dear sir. Yes, indeed, I have done my best, my very best, for the estate, as my father did before me; and the day upon which I shall deliver up my accounts and those of your guardians into your hands is one to which I have long looked forward with pleasant anticipation. In the mean time I may say, in the name of your guardians, that you can draw upon us in excess of your ordinary allowance. There are certain accumulations of income which we always thought would serve for some such purpose as this projected journey. We could have wished, of course, that it had been delayed, but as matters stand for you to anticipate their receipt by a few days can be an affair of no great moment to us."

And thus it was arranged. Arthur's way was smoothed, and nothing remained to be done but the attainment of some clue to Maurice Grey's place of refuge.