“It’s impossible. There’s a mistake somewhere.”
“That’s what I said, at first. But it’s true. He owned to it.”
Lucian, utterly sick with dismay, could speak no word.
“You’ll have to tell his mother,” said Sir Thomas brutally. “She’ll be here any minute. She’s always spoilt the lad, from the time he was a little boy, and you couldn’t get a straight answer out of him at any price. I could have told her how it would be. You’ll have to tell her, Lucian,” he repeated inexorably. “You’re used to telling women bad news, and she’ll take it better from you. My wife would have come, but it’s knocked her up utterly. By bad luck, she opened the telegram while I was out. We’ve sent for Diana to be with her, and I shall go back as soon as Ford can get here.”
“Is he coming?”
“Of course he’s coming. We’ve got to do the best we can to save the lad from prison, for the sake of the name. My God, to think this young blackguard of Jim’s ’ll be my only grandchild!” raved Sir Thomas.
Lucian paid small attention to the old man’s violence. In earlier years he had seen Sir Thomas Aviolet moved to a like frenzy of savage and irrational fury over the more scandalous episodes in the ill-starred existence of Cecil’s father. He knew that the very violence of the old man’s display of wrath was shortening its duration and exhausting his never very profound capabilities of emotion.
He was thinking, clearly and swiftly.
“Where’s Cecil now?”
“At the police station, I tell you—in a cell at the police station. They searched his rooms this morning—the police did—and they found these blasted cups and things all over the place. They arrested him then and there. They said he was green with funk—he would be, the little cad—and whimpered out at once that he’d stolen the things. God knows what he’s been doing. Got into a mess, I suppose, and thought he’d turn the stuff into cash somehow. I’d sooner he’d taken money, upon my soul I would, than gone and sneaked the pots and things that other decent fellows had won for straight riding and rowing and the rest of it. I’ll pay up—of course I will—I’d pay up ten times over for the sake of the name—but it’ll come out—it’s bound to.”