It was done, and they descended together. Donal went back to the schoolroom, not expecting to see her again till the next day. But in half an hour she came to him, saying she had been into every room on that floor, both where she thought it might be, and where she knew it could not be, and had not seen the weight.
“The probability then is,” replied Donal, “that thereabout somewhere—there, or farther down in that neighbourhood—lies the secret; but we cannot be sure, for the weight may not have reached the bottom of the shaft. Let us think what we shall do next.”
He placed a chair for her by the fire. They had the room to themselves.
CHAPTER LIII.
MISTRESS BROOKES UPON THE EARL.
They were hardly seated when Simmons appeared, saying he had been looking everywhere for her ladyship, for his lordship was taken as he had never seen him before: he had fainted right out in the half-way room, and he could not get him to.
Having given orders to send at once to Auchars for the doctor, lady Arctura hastened with Donal to the room on the stair. The earl was stretched motionless and pale on the floor. But for a slight twitching in one muscle of the face, they might have concluded him dead. They tried to get something down his throat, but without success. The men carried him up to his chamber.
He began to come to himself, and lady Arctura left him, telling Simmons to come to the library when he could, and let them know how he was.
In about an hour he came: the doctor had been, and his master was better.
“Do you know any cause for the attack?” asked her ladyship.
“I’ll tell you all about it, my lady, so far as I know,” answered the butler. “—I was there in that room with him—I had taken him some accounts, and was answering some questions about them, when all at once there came a curious noise in the wall. I can’t think what it was—an inward rumbling it was, that seemed to go up and down the wall with a sort of groaning, then stopped a while, and came again. It sounded nothing very dreadful to me; perhaps if it had been in the middle of the night, I mightn’t have liked it. His lordship started at the first sound of it, turned pale and gasped, then cried out, laid his hand on his heart, and rolled off his chair. I did what I could for him, but it wasn’t like one of his ordinary attacks, and so I came to your ladyship. He’s such a ticklish subject, you see, my lady! It’s quite alarming to be left alone with him. It’s his heart; and you know, my lady—I should be sorry to frighten you, but you know, Mr. Grant, a gentleman with that complaint may go off any moment. I must go back to him now, my lady, if you please.”