“Presumably.”
To Pen’s astonishment, Cedric broke into a shout of laughter. “Oh, by God, but that’s rich!” he gasped. “Oh, blister me, Ricky, that’s hell’s own jest!”
Sir Richard put up his eyeglass, surveying his young friend through it with faint surprise. “I did not, of course, expect the news to prostrate you with grief, but I confess I was hardly prepared—”
“Paste, dear old boy! nothing but paste!” said Cedric, doubled up over a chair-back.
The eyeglass dropped. “Dear me!” said Sir Richard. “Yes, I ought to have thought of that. Saar?”
“Years ago!” Cedric said, wiping his streaming eyes with the Belcher handkerchief. “Only came out when I—I, mark you, Ricky!—set the Bow Street Runners on to it! I thought m’ father was devilish lukewarm over the affair. Never guessed, however! There was m’ mother sending messenger upon messenger up to Brook Street, and the girls nagging at me, so off I went to Bow Street. Fact is, my head’s never at its best in the morning. No sooner had I set the bloodhounds on to the damned necklace than I began to think the thing over. I told you Bev was a bad man, Ricky. I’ll lay you a monkey he stole the necklace.”
Sir Richard nodded. “Quite true.”
“Damme, I call that going too far! M’ mother had a secret hiding-place made for it in her chaise. M’father knew. I knew. Bev knew. Dare say the girls knew. But no one else, d’ye mark me? Thought it all out at White’s. Nothing like brandy for clearing the head! Then I remembered that Bev took himself off to Bath last week. Never could imagine why! Thought I’d better look into things m’self. Just made up my mind to take a little journey to Bath, when in walked m’ father in a deuce of a pucker. He’d heard from Melissa that I’d been to Bow Street. Pounced on me, looking as queer as Dick’s hatband, and wanting to know what the devil I meant by setting the Runners on to it. Now, Ricky, dear boy, would you say I was a green ’un? Give you my word I never guessed what was coming! Always thought m’ father meant to stick to the diamonds! He sold ’em three years ago when he had that run of bad luck! Had ’em copied, so that no one was the wiser, not even my mother! He was as mad as Bedlam with me, and damme, I don’t blame him, for if my Runner ran the necklace to earth there’d be the devil to pay, and no pitch hot! So that’s why I’m here. But what beats me is, what in thunder brought you here?”
“You told me to run,” murmured Sir Richard.
“So I did, but to tell you the truth I never thought you would, dear boy. But why here? Out with it, Ricky! You never came here in search of Bev!”