“No.”
“Then I’ll introduce you. Queer chap, Carter. He’s a lawyer, although I don’t think he has much practice, except managing his mother’s estate.”
McNeill settled back in the luxurious car with an exclamation of satisfaction.
“What do you think of Verplanck?” he asked.
“He seems to me to be a very public-spirited man,” answered Kennedy discreetly.
That, however, was not what McNeill meant and he ignored it. And so for the next ten minutes we were entertained with a little retail scandal of Westport and Bluffwood, including a tale that seemed to have gained currency that Verplanck and Mrs. Hollingsworth were too friendly to please Mrs. Verplanck. I set the whole thing down to the hostility and jealousy of the towns people who misinterpret everything possible in the smart set, although I could not help recalling how quickly she had spoken when we had visited the Hollingsworth house in the Streamline the day before.
Montgomery Carter happened to be at home and, at least openly, interposed no objection to our going about the grounds.
“You see,” explained Kennedy, watching the effect of his words as if to note whether Carter himself had noticed anything unusual the night before, “we saw a light moving over here last night. To tell the truth, I half expected you would have a story to add to ours, of a second visit.”
Carter smiled. “No objection at all. I’m simply nonplussed at the nerve of this fellow, coming back again. I guess you’ve heard what a narrow squeak he had with me. You’re welcome to go anywhere, just so long as you don’t disturb my study down there in the boathouse. I use that because it overlooks the bay—just the place to study over knotty legal problems.”
Back of, or in front of the Carter house, according as you fancied it faced the bay or not, was the boathouse, built by Carter’s father, who had been a great yachtsman in his day and commodore of the club. His son had not gone in much for water sports and had converted the corner underneath a sort of observation tower into a sort of country law office.