"What did he want of you? Did he ask you to draw some of that money for him?"
"Hank, that was about the sharpest trick you ever did," said Mr. Gibbons, laughing outright. "Yes, he wanted me to draw some of it for him; but I told him I couldn't do it. The money is all in Bob's hands, and there it will have to remain until Bob comes back."
"I am glad to hear you say that," said Hank, who was immensely relieved. "You see, mother and I got to wondering how in the world he could have found it out, and it occurred to me that, you being Bob's lawyer, he would come to see you about it; so I came down. He can't get any of it, can he?"
"I don't know of any way in which he can. The authorities at the bank don't know that you are in any way interested in that money. By the way, how did you happen to find that pearl?"
Hank explained in a few words, adding that Houston was in the store at the time Bob called upon Mr. Vollar, and had heard all that passed between them.
"I believe that Houston is at the bottom of this," said Hank. "He told me this morning, while I was going after you, that there was something he wanted to tell me about this pearl, and when I came back I went to see what it was. I supposed that Mr. Vollar had paid me more than the pearl was worth, and I wanted to give it back; but I could see that the jeweller was very angry at Houston."
"Whew!" whistled Mr. Gibbons. "Hank, you are in a scrape all around."
"That's what I think. I gave the money to Bob Nellis to put in the bank, and no one but Leon Sprague and Ben Watson knew a thing about it; but now I find that father's got hold of it."
"Did you intend to go to that stream and gather some more pearls?" asked the lawyer.
"Yes. That's what I intended to do."