"Don't write to me or call," he said. "I must go home at once, and I shall probably have to go down again to Fairbridge. They are sure to send for me. I will write to you as soon as I can and fix up an appointment."
She looked at him in wonder. He had courage of its kind, and courage of any kind appeals to women.
"You need not be afraid," she murmured. "I will keep my promise," and as he told the cabman where to go, she leaned back and closed her eyes in utter exhaustion.
Left by himself, Melville, too, could have collapsed; there was a physical reaction that left all his joints weak, and he shivered with cold. But danger was not over yet; much would depend upon his getting into his rooms unnoticed. So he hailed another hansom and drove to Piccadilly Circus.
"What sort of storm have you had here?" he asked, as he paid the cabman.
"Bad, sir; very heavy about four o'clock."
"Ah, well," Melville said, "it's good for your business, I daresay."
He walked round the corner into Jermyn Street erect and steady, although he felt so excited. How would things work out? The street was almost empty, for London was dressing for dinner, and the commissionaire was not standing by the front door of the chambers. A swift glance into the office showed Melville that that was empty too, and rapidly he walked along the thickly-carpeted passage. Opposite the lift he paused to scan the names upon the letters stuck in the letter rack, and his heart leaped as he caught sight of the orange envelope of a telegram addressed to himself. So it had come! He put out his hand involuntarily to take it, but checked the impulse and silently ran up the staircase and gained his rooms. Once there he tore off all his clothes and hung them in a wardrobe, which he locked. He changed his linen, dried and brushed his hair, and then, putting on a pair of flannel trousers and a smoking jacket, rang the bell and lay down on the sofa, a cigarette in his mouth, a paper in his hand.
After an interval the bell was answered by the manager.
"Where's Jervis to-day, then?" Melville asked pleasantly.