Jem took no notice of the interruption, which only had the effect of making Mark Ruthine move up a few paces nearer.
“He made a great point of secrecy,” continued Agar, “which at the time I thought to be for my safety. But now I see otherwise; Ruthine has pointed it out to me. If I had never come back he would have said nothing, and would thus have escaped the odium of having sent a man to certain death. I only made one condition—namely, that three persons should be informed at once of my survival, after the disaster to Stevenor's force. Those three persons were my brother Arthur, my step-mother, and Miss Glynde.”
He paused for a moment, and Dora's clear, low voice took up the narrative.
“I met General Michael,” she said, “in London, some months ago. I met him more than once. He knew quite well who I was, and he never told me.”
Thus was the first link of the chain riveted. Seymour Michael winced. He never raised his eyes.
Mark Ruthine moved forward again. He did so with a singular rapidity, for he had seen murder flash from beneath Jem Agar's eyebrows. He was standing between them, his left hand gripping Jem's right arm with an undeniable strength. Dora, looking at them, suddenly felt the tears well to her eyes. There was something that melted her heart strangely in the sight of those two men—friends—standing side by side; and at that moment her affection went out towards Mark Ruthine, the friend of Jem, who understood Jem, who knew Jem and loved him, perhaps, a thousandth part as well as she did; an affection which was never withdrawn all through their lives.
It was Ruthine's voice that broke the silence, giving Jem time to master himself.
“It is to his credit,” he said, also addressing Dora, “that for very shame he did not dare to tell you that he had sent Agar on a mission which was as unnecessary as it was dangerous. When he sent him he must have known that it was almost a sentence of death.”
Then Jem spoke again.
“As soon as I got back to civilisation,” he said, “I wrote to him as arranged, and I enclosed letters to—the three persons who were admitted into the secret. Those letters have, of course, never reached their destination. General Michael will be required to explain that also.”