“Well,” she snapped, “why don’t you go on? Caroline, dear, you really must excuse him. The dear boy is quite overcome.”
Captain Elisha stepped forward.
“Excuse me for interruptin’, ma’am,” he said, addressing the ruffled matron; “but I know you’re sort of surprised to see us all here and maybe I’d better explain. Mr. Sylvester told me you and your son had an appointment with him for this afternoon. Now there was something we—or I, anyhow—wanted to talk with you about, so I thought we might as well make one job of it. Sylvester’s a pretty busy man, and I know he has other things to attend to; so why not let him go ahead and tell you what you come to hear, and then we can take up the other part by ourselves. He’s told me what you wanted to see him about, and it’s somethin’ we’re all interested in, bein’ as we’re one family—or goin’ to be pretty soon. So suppose he just tells you now. Ain’t that a good idea?”
Mrs. Dunn looked at the speaker, and then at the lawyer, and seemed to have caught some of her son’s embarrassment.
“I—we did have an appointment with Mr. Sylvester,” she admitted, reluctantly; “but the business was not important. And,” haughtily, “I do not care to discuss it here.”
The captain opened his eyes. “Hey?” he exclaimed. “Not important? You surprise me, ma’am. I judged ’twas mighty important. ’Twas about the real size of your father’s estate, Caroline,” turning to the girl. “I thought Mrs. Dunn and Mr. Malcolm must think ’twas important, for I understand they’ve been telephonin’ and askin’ for appointments for the last two days. Why, yes! and they come way down here in all this storm on purpose to talk it over with him. Am I wrong? Ain’t that so, ma’am?”
It was so, and Mrs. Dunn could not well deny it. Therefore, she took refuge in a contemptuous silence. The captain nodded.
“As to discussin’ it here,” he went on with bland innocence, “why, we’re all family folks, same as I said, and there ain’t any secrets between us on that subject. So suppose we all listen while Mr. Sylvester tells just what he’d have told you and Mr. Malcolm. It’s pretty hard to hear; but bad news is soon told. Heave ahead, Mr. Sylvester.”
Mrs. Dunn made one more attempt to avoid the crisis she saw was approaching.
“Surely, Caroline,” she said testily, “you don’t wish your private affairs treated in this public manner. Come, let us go.”