During the day Colonel Ross had no occasion to look into his trunk of securities. Clearly, he had no suspicion that he had met with a loss.
It might strike the reader as curious that Philip began to be impatient to have his father make the discovery. An impending blow always leads to a state of suspense which is by no means agreeable. When the blow falls, a certain relief is felt. So Philip knew that the discovery would be made sooner or later, and he wanted to have the matter settled, and clear himself at once from suspicion by diverting it to Harry Gilbert.
In the hope that his father would find out his loss, he lingered round the house through the afternoon, filling up the time as well as he could. Usually, he would have passed at least a part of the time with James Congreve, but the latter had gone to the city.
“Don’t you feel well, Philip?” asked his mother.
“Certainly! What makes you ask?”
“You don’t generally stay at home all the afternoon.”
“Oh, well, there isn’t anything going on in the village.”
“Where is that friend of yours who is staying at the hotel?”
“He went away this morning to the city.”
“Isn’t he coming back?”