“Slavin!” said Eleanor, in an amazed tone. “Is that your father’s name, Zara? Why didn’t you tell us?”
“He told me not to,” said Zara, nervously.
“Zara’s father had one bad fault; he wasn’t at all ready to trust people,” Holmes went on, easily. “He didn’t even trust me as he should have done, and he’s been positively insulting to Weeks. It’s made a lot of trouble for him.”
He looked at his watch, then turned to the servant.
“Go upstairs and make the rooms comfortable for Miss Mercer at once,” he said. “It’s getting late.” Then he turned to the men who had accompanied him to the Columbia. “It’s all right, boys,” he said. “You needn’t wait.”
“These people keep their ears entirely too wide open,” he explained to Eleanor. “I have to be rather careful with them, though they probably wouldn’t understand much if they did hear. Well, that is about all I’ve got to tell you, anyhow. You see, you needn’t worry about your friend Zara. As to Bessie–Well, that’s different.”
He looked at Bessie malevolently.
“I don’t think I care to tell you anything more about her,” he said. “Weeks will look after her all right–as well as she deserves to be looked after.”
Bessie seemed to be nervous as he looked at her, and edged away from him.
“If you think you can keep Bessie in the care of that man Weeks,” said Eleanor, “you are going to find yourself decidedly mistaken. He won’t treat her properly, and if he doesn’t, the courts won’t compel her to stay there. I know enough law for that, and I tell you now, that, even though you may have some sort of law on your side just now, because you have played this trick, you won’t be able to count on the law much longer. It will be as powerful against you, properly used, as it has been for you, improperly used.”