“No,” he said, laying down the letter on the seat between us, “on the whole it is good news. You must have known that some such attempt was inevitable. The man believes, of course, that you have somehow disposed of the drug for your own profit. To him that would doubtless seem a perfectly natural move on your part. He simply looks upon you as a hypocrite by whom he has been outwitted. Of course such a man will not easily be reconciled to the loss of his share of the plunder. It should be a relief to you to know how he means to open his game.”
“I suppose it should,” I admitted, “but the prospect of seeing Jakoub here is not agreeable.”
“Of course it is disagreeable. But on the other hand, it is a great gain that Jakoub is at liberty. No doubt they are sending him here because they feel he is no longer safe in Egypt. Van Ermengen and his colleagues are as much interested in his remaining free as we are. No doubt Jakoub can convict them all and destroy the conspiracy should he be taken himself. By the way, do they suspect your relationship to your brother?”
“I don’t think so. They have no reason to suppose we are more than partners, for they have never heard his real name.”
“Then if we can once convince them that the hashish has been destroyed they will realise they have no real weapon against you.”
“I wish,” I said weakly, “that I could pay them off and be done with it.”
“That would be absolutely fatal, and in my view immoral,” said the bishop sternly. “Besides, you never would be done with it then.”
“Should I reply to this letter?” I asked.
“I think not. At present I think not. But it requires consideration. It is better that Jakoub should come here. We must keep him under observation and safe from arrest. I hope your brother and Welfare will return first, for they will know better than we can how to handle the ruffian. It might even be well, if they go to Nyasaland, that they should take him with them. They could offer him safety at least, and he might look upon it as a new field for villainy.”
“He would certainly make it that,” I said.