The old lady called him “an ass and a grinning baboon” for his pains, and told him “get out and go to your work, man!” But George was right, for he had seen them as he said, when on his way back to the house after his visit to the “Jolly Spades,” although his vision was then somewhat hazy, and his intellects more obtuse than usual from the large potations of home-brewed he had taken at such an early hour of the day—thanks to Miss Kingscott’s liberality to him. The dowager was perplexed, but her cool, calculating temperament was soon at work.
She determined to send at once to her lawyers in London, and calling in the aid of the police to track the fugitive.
Doctor Jolly, too, who came in at this moment to see after Tom—rather earlier than usual for his professional call, but he was anxious about his patient—warmly applauded the dowager’s resolve.
He, of course, was also startled at the news that Susan had not been heard of. “Bless my soul!” he said, when all the facts and enquiries that had been made were explained to him. “Bless my soul! It’s very strange, very strange, indeed. She could not have stopped anywhere in the neighbourhood, or you would have heard of her before. She must have gone off to some distance. Did she have any money with her?”
“Oh, no!” said Miss Kingscott, to whom he had addressed himself.
“Fool!” spoke out sharply the dowager.
“Why, is it likely that I would give any of my hard-earned money to an idiot to throw away?”
The doctor confessed the improbability of Mrs Hartshorne’s disposing of her surplus funds in the manner suggested, although he was somewhat indignant at the strong epithet applied to himself: he was, however, too much interested on Susan’s behalf to cavil now about words with the old lady.
“Have you asked about her in the village and at the station?” he said, after reflecting a minute or two.
“What is the use of that?” replied the dowager; “all the people know about her at Hartwood, and would have stopped her. But you can ask yourself presently, if you don’t mind going down there.”