Meeting Carden shortly after, he asked bluntly whether he knew anything, and related what he had heard, but Carden knew nothing.
Carden did suspect a great deal, but he did not care to express his views on the subject, and remained quiet.
Mr. Stafford was dissatisfied, and, being aroused now, he determined to get at the bottom of the matter. There being but two people left, and they the principals, he chose Kate as the easiest to approach on the subject. Here again he was disappointed; for on telling what he had heard, she simply smiled.
"Why, papa!" she said, "how ridiculous to pay attention to such idle talk! If Mr. Martin should hear of this he would not allow us to remain an hour. And you know we are considerably indebted to him."
There was no blushing or confusion—no awkward attempt at explanation—and Mr. Stafford was completely crushed. Had he seen Carden, just a few minutes previous, telling Kate that her father would probably call on her shortly regarding certain queer stories regarding herself and Martin, and then leave at once without waiting to see the effect of his words, he would not perhaps have been crushed so completely. She did blush then—very furiously, too.
However, Mr. Stafford was soon relieved of "the infernal Irish and their confounded stories," for in the course of a few days Martin, who was again becoming uneasy and anxious to get back to London, obtained Dr. Fox's consent to make the trip; and in recognition of his kindness, as he considered it, Martin insisted that the doctor should accompany them.
"I'll make it good, Doctor," he said. "You can put some other poor chap in your place, and give him a chance to make something."
And so it was arranged, with the addition of Julia Farrell, Martin's first nurse. Just how to recompense her at present for her goodness to him he did not know. In the future he had something laid out for her, but did not care to spoil it by being premature; and accordingly, to keep her in the way of doing better and of being in a better position than she could possibly reach in the "Blessert Arms," Martin requested her to accompany them to England, and with Mrs. Moran's assistance persuaded her to do so. To Mrs. Moran he confided his intentions regarding Julia, and to help in carrying them out, left a message for O'Brien.
The decision to start was arrived at on Thursday, and the time of departure fixed for Saturday morning, to catch the night boat from Dublin and still leave time for a little rest before crossing the Channel. This was strictly in accordance with Dr. Fox's schedule, and they spent an hour or two during the afternoon looking around Dublin.
On returning to the hotel, they were considerably surprised to find O'Brien awaiting them; even Martin, who had left the message for him, was a little surprised. For reasons of his own, Martin was pleased to have him with them, and the party started in very good spirits for England.