"Six hundred golden pounds," repeated the others.
"It's your share of Lague—your full share, Greeba, woman," said Jacob, deliberately, "and every penny of it is yours. So take it, and may it bring you a blessing, Greeba. And don't think unkind of us because we have held it back until now, for we kept it from you for your own good, seeing plain there was someone harking after you for sake of what you had, and fearing your good money would thereby fall into evil hands, and you be made poor and penniless."
"Ay, ay," muttered the others; "that Jason—that Red Jason."
"But he's gone now, and serve him right," said Jacob, "and you're wedded to the right man, praise God."
So saying he shambled to his feet, and his brothers did likewise.
But Greeba stood without moving, and said through her compressed lips, "How did you know that I was here?"
"The letter, the letter," Asher blurted out, and Jacob gave him a side-long look, and then said:
"Ye see, dear, it was this way. When you were gone, and we didn't know where to look for you, and were sore grieved to think you'd maybe left us in anger, not rightly seeing our drift towards you, we could do nothing but sit about and fret for you. And one day we were turning over some things in a box, just to bring back the memory of you, when what should we find but a letter writ to you by the good man himself."
"Ay, Sunlocks—Michael Sunlocks," said Stean.
"And a right good man he is, beyond gainsay; and he knows how to go through life, and I always said it," said Asher.