"By all means, and cut your own throat. Go!" I flung open the door.
He looked with deadly hatred at Gertrude and myself, then departed in silence.
When I turned towards my darling, she had fainted.
[CHAPTER XVII.]
LADY MABEL'S VISIT
Of course in daring Striver to do his worst I knew that I was running considerable risk. The man was crazy with love, and might be sufficiently reckless of consequences to himself to tell the police all that he had confessed to us. Then Gertrude would certainly be arrested on his evidence. Striver, as an accomplice after the fact would be arrested also: and then Justice would have to remove the bandage from her eyes to learn which of the two was guilty. In my own mind I had no doubt of Gertrude's innocence, but an unbiassed jury might take, and probably would take, on the declarations of Striver, a very different view. I had dared much on the spur of the moment, and had defied a jealous man. Therefore for the next two or three days I was uneasy.
But I did not permit Gertrude to see that I was doubtful of Striver's silence. When she recovered from her faint she expressed herself afraid lest he should speak out, and, in point of fact, voiced my sentiments. But in order to pacify her I made light of her fears.
"My dear, much as the man loves you, he certainly will not place his neck in a noose to be revenged on you," I said again and again. "He is too deeply implicated, by running away with my car and with your cloak, and with being in the house when the crime was actually committed, to dare to tell the police the truth. Even if he did go with his story I doubt if you would be arrested, as on the face of it he looks much more guilty."
"Do you think he is guilty, Cyrus?" she asked tremulously.
"Well," I spoke doubtfully, "some such thought struck me once or twice. He was in the house, he wanted the eye to learn the secret of the hiding-place, and he knew that you had paid a visit. He might have murdered the old lady with your hat-pin so as to throw the blame on you, and then might have hoped to implicate you still further by using your cloak as a disguise. That Giles mistook him for a woman--which he counted upon--would, of course, aid him to entangle you yet more in the snare. But I can't be sure if he is actually guilty."