“I want you to stay with me in case I have to receive any more dubious visitors.”
“All right,” said Geoffrey eagerly. “Have you got anything for me to knock ’em on the head with?”
A burst of subdued laughter met this speech, in spite of the tension of feeling from which his hearers were suffering. Geoffrey put his hands in his pockets and tilted back his head.
“Oh, you may sneer and you may laugh,” said he. “But it’ll be odd if we get off without a bit of a shindy. Disappointing too,” he added reflectively. “I must say I should like to crack a skull or two, if these fellows are really all members of a gang and partners of those rascals Johnson and Diggs!”
Gerard took him good-humouredly by the shoulder.
“It’s not likely to be a question of blows, Geoff,” said he. “On the contrary, if only I can get hold of Candover, I want to persuade him that I’m deeply indebted to him for his constant kindness to my wife, and to apologise to him for her rudeness to him the other day.”
Geoffrey opened wide eyes and whistled softly.
“If you were to talk like that to him before me,” said he, “I should give you away. I couldn’t stand still and smile at the man whom I knew to be a scoundrel.”
“Then you’ll have to keep away,” said Gerard. “For our only chance of running him to earth is to make him think we have no suspicion of him, at any rate.”
Geoffrey looked bewildered.