“None whatever. He made up his mind very suddenly; in fact I don’t think on Saturday he had any intention of going abroad at all. I heard nothing of it until Sunday at any rate. All yesterday he was very busy arranging his affairs, and this morning he paid his bill, and a week’s rent instead of notice. He took everything away with him and said he should not be returning. Poor gentleman! He looked very ill. There was some trouble I am sure, but he was not one to talk about himself. I’m sorry I can’t give you his address, but he gave me no hint of where he was going any more than of why he was going. All I know for certain is that he drove off to catch the club train, 3 P.M. from Victoria. Perhaps if you drove after him at once you might be just in time to say good-bye. You are not far from Victoria Station here.”
Strength came back to me at this suggestion. “Come,” I cried, seizing hold of Anne’s cloak, and almost dragging her out of the room. Almost as excited as I, she rushed after me down the stairs, and a moment later we were tearing along the streets to Victoria. We wasted five precious minutes by going first to an utterly wrong part of the station. I was nearly frantic when I discovered this mistake, and no porter seemed to have time to attend to us. At length a gentleman took pity on our helplessness, and offered us his services.
“The club train, for going abroad—I must catch it,” I said feverishly.
“You are on quite a wrong platform. This is the Brighton and South Coast line, you want the London, Chatham, and Dover. I doubt if you’ll catch the club train, but we’ll see. Follow me—this way.”
We followed quickly where he led but it seemed a long way from the one line to the other.
“Ah! Just in time! There’s your train!” exclaimed our guide when at last we reached the right platform.
Yes, there it was, just a little ahead, to the right. I ran wildly forward, my heart beating almost to suffocation. The others followed me.
“Oh, by Jove! Hard luck, the train’s off!” exclaimed the stranger-friend behind me.
My knees trembled beneath me and I came suddenly to a full stop.
“And there he is!” screamed Anne. “Oh, look Miss, in that saloon carriage, bending down. Oh, somebody, stop the train!”