"Anything at all, sir," I protested.
"Very good. I want you to drop me a line every week to tell me how he is, and if he takes any sudden turn for the worse you may send me a telegram."
"Certainly, sir. Is that all?"
"No!" He glanced anxiously towards the door. "No one can hear us, can they?"
"There's no one in the house, sir, but you and me."
"That's famous; well, Brown, see here, I'm heavily in debt and some of the beggars are pressing me into a corner. That's why I came up to town."
"Yes, sir!"
"And—and—" his face changed colour, "there is a woman too!" he stammered, "an actress!"
"There's always a woman, I should think, where a handsome young gentleman like you, sir, is concerned," I murmured with a sympathetic smile.
His vanity was tickled, but the conceited grin my words had called to his lips quickly faded into a look of anxiety. The matter was manifestly serious.