“Political business,” said McNeice.
“Of course,” I said, “if it’s a matter of politics, everything must give way to politics. But I’m very sorry to lose you, Crossan. My business affairs—”
“You’ll have no business affairs left, my lord, if the Home Rule Bill passes.”
“But you’re going to stop it,” I said.
“We are,” said Crossan.
He certainly believed that he was. At the present moment he believes that he did stop it.
I found Godfrey propped up in bed. His face had a curiously unbalanced appearance owing to the way in which one side of his jaw was swollen. Bob Power’s original blow must have been a hard one. I noticed when he spoke that one of his eye teeth was broken off short. He began to pour out his complaint the moment I entered the room.
“A murderous assault was made on me last night,” he said. “After I left your house I walked down—”
“Don’t talk if it hurts you, Godfrey,” I said.
He was speaking in a muffled way which led me to think that the inside of his mouth must be nearly as much swollen as the outside.