Wallbridge came panting before me, his round, bald head bobbing with excitement.
“Ready for the fray, eh? Oh, it's worth money to see this. Talk of your theaters now, eh? Got any orders?”
“Not yet,” I returned, hardly sharing the little man's enjoyment of the scene. The size of the stakes made me tremble.
I could see nothing of Doddridge Knapp, and the uneasy feeling that he was at Livermore came over me. What was my duty in case he did not appear? Had he left his fortune at the mercy of the market to follow his lawless schemes? Had he been caught in his own trap, and was he now to be ruined as the result of his own acts? For a moment I felt a vengeful hope that he might have come to grief. But when I remembered that it was Luella who must suffer with him, I determined to make an effort to save the deal, even without authority, if the money or credit for buying the remaining shares was to be had.
I might have spared my worry. The call had not proceeded far, when the massive form of Doddridge Knapp appeared at the railing. The strong wolf-marks of the face were stronger than ever as he watched the scene on the floor. I looked in vain for a trace upon him of last night's work. If he had been at Livermore, he showed no sign of the passions or anxieties that had filled the dark hours.
He nodded carelessly for me to come to him as he caught my eye.
“You have the stock?”
“All safe.”
“And the proxies?”
“Just as you ordered.”