‘Oh,’ said John, ‘you are, are you? And why’s that?’
‘Stubbs told me this afternoon,’ said James, c that he could smash me dead, but so far he has no particle of evidence against you.’
A light sprang into the burly scoundrel’s eyes. He veiled it in an instant, but not before two of the quartette there present had read it. The boy turned away, groaning, and the General looked after him with a face from which all sternness disappeared for a moment.
‘Poor lad! ‘he said, within doors. ‘Poor lad!’
‘Now, look here,’ said John Jervase, ‘they haven’t got any evidence agen you any more than they have agen me. The whole thing’s a put-up job. If it was De Blacquaire’s doing, he’d have gone for me rather than for you, because he always hated me, and I’ve put him down more than once or twice at Petty Sessions, and taught him to know his place. But De Blacquaire’s an officer and a gentleman’—he made a burly bow towards the General—’ and I don’t suppose for a minute that he’d be guilty even of dreaming of such a piece of rascality as this. It’s much more likely to be some pettifogging lawyer’s game—some sneaking rogue that’s got these fellow-rascals round him, with an idea of doing a little bit of blackmail. Stubbs is a decent fellow—for a lawyer. I don’t think Stubbs would have a finger in that sort of pie, any more than his master. But Stubbs has been got at; that’s how it’ll turn out, you bet. Keep your pecker up, James,’ he added, in a tone which the patron and the bully spoke at once. ‘Well take care of you. Just you trust to old Jack Jervase—that’s your game, my lad. He’ll fight the battle for the pair of us.’
Between his pretence of having thought the matter out impartially, and his other pretence of encouraging his timid relative, he had talked himself back into something like his common aspect, and his common manner; and there was a little of the nautical swagger in the few steps he took towards the table, where he applied himself again to the decanter.
Just then a knock sounded at the door, and the voice of the domestic from the kitchen was heard saying that Mr. James’s change of clothes was ready for him in the master’s bedroom.
‘You know your way, James,’ said Jervase. ‘You’d better get into dry toggery at once. The missus will have a bedroom ready for you in half an hour. Meanwhile, you go and change; and when you come back we’ll forget this nonsense over a bowl of punch. We’ve both had a drenching this wild night, and we shall neither of us be the worse for a good Captain’s nip.’
James stole furtively away, making himself as small as possible, and the General’s eye followed him to the door.
‘Jervase,’ said the General, with a suspicion of satire in his voice, ‘your cousin seems to take this ridiculous matter rather seriously.’