The moment had passed. Duncombe began to swim vigorously for the shore. He was quite himself when he stepped out on to the sand.
"I wouldn't make a fuss about that, if I were you, Lister," he suggested. "It looks as though I weren't careful enough. As a matter of fact, I don't think the boy would have come to any harm."
Arthur was seated by himself on the sands, his arms clenched around his knees, his face turned away from all of us. He seemed to have ignored the summons to prepare for lunch.
"Probably not," I answered, trying to speak in as unconcerned a tone as possible. "Boys and drunken men have a wonderful knack of avoiding accidents."
We strolled up the beach together. Duncombe paused and spoke to Arthur.
"Come along," he said, "they're waiting luncheon for us."
Arthur turned and looked at him. I could not say that there was anything either malicious or reproachful in that look, and yet it worried me. He made no answer in words. A few moments later, however, he scrambled to his feet and went to the rock behind which his clothes were lying.
Duncombe seemed determined that nothing which had happened should interfere with the success of the picnic. He abandoned all his reserve, related anecdotes, chaffed everybody in turn, opened wine, and absolutely created an atmosphere of pleasure. Leonard told stories and Rose sang to us and danced upon the sands. Arthur, after a preliminary fit of gloom, drank far too much champagne for his age and became, in his rather clumsy way, as light-hearted as the rest. He and Ella sat for some time apart from the others, his arm drawn through hers, until presently they wandered off together to look for Venetian shells, the spoils of some long-forgotten shipwreck. On the whole, the excursion which I had seen foredoomed to failure, turned out a great success. Duncombe only once, during the rest of the afternoon, referred to the disturbing subject.
"You don't suppose," he suggested, "that Arthur is thinking any more about that little affair, eh?"
"Why should he?" I answered coolly. "He must know that you made a mistake."