A loud and rudely incredulous haw-haw from Captain Durand was his only reply.
"You may laugh as much as you like, but Mr. Lisle told me that he would gladly give a thousand pounds to get out of the Nicobars trip, and the last thing he said to me, as he bade me good-bye, was, 'I shall see you again soon.' I remember all these things now, and put two and two together, but I cannot make it out—I am utterly puzzled. Perhaps Mr. Quentin will be able to throw some light on the subject!"
"Quentin wants to marry her himself."
"Not he! He only wished to be a dog in the manger, to engross the only pretty girl in the place, that was all. I know him well. And now that she has been left an orphan, without a fraction, he has as much idea of making her Mrs. Quentin, as he has of flying over the moon!"
"All right, Em, time will tell.—I bet you a new bonnet that this time next year, she will be Mrs. Q."
"No more than she will be Queen of England," returned his wife with emphasis. This was positively the last word, and Mrs. Durand's property, for they had now reached the steps of their own bungalow, and consequently the end of their journey.
CHAPTER XXIV.
"FAREWELL, PORT BLAIR."
"Farewell at once—for once, for all—and ever."
Richard II.