“Yes—in prison, I tell you; charged with swindling and theft ever since he set foot in Liverpool. There, if that’s not reason enough for turning them up, I give you up. You can tell mother so, and say I’m down at the club, and she’d better leave supper up for me; do you hear?”
Jemima did not hear. She sat rocking herself in her chair, and sobbing as if her heart would break. Vulgar young person as she was, she had a heart, and, quite apart from everything else, the thought of the calamity which had befallen the fatherless family was in itself enough to move her deep pity; but when to that was added her own strange but constant affection for Reginald himself, despite all his aversion to her, it was a blow that fell heavily upon her.
She would not believe Reginald was guilty of the odious crimes Sam had so glibly catalogued; but guilty or not guilty, he was in prison, and it is only due to the honest, warm-hearted Jemima to say that she wished a hundred times that wretched evening that she could be in his place.
But could nothing be done? She knew it was no use trying to extract any more particulars from Samuel. As it was, she guessed only too truly that he would be raging with himself for telling her so much. Her mother could do nothing. She would probably fly with the news to Mrs Cruden’s bedside, and possibly kill her outright.
Horace! She might tell him, but she was afraid. The news would fall on him like a thunderbolt, and she dreaded being the person to inflict the blow. Yet he ought to knew, even if it doubled his misery and ended in no good to Reginald. Suppose she wrote to him.
At that moment a knock came at the door, followed by the entrance of Booms in all the gorgeousness of his evening costume. He frequently dropped in like this, especially since Mrs Cruden’s illness, to hear how she was, and to inquire after Miss Crisp; and this was his errand this evening.
“No better, I suppose?” said he, dolefully, sitting down very slowly by reason of the tightness of his garments.
“Yes, the doctor says she’s better; a little, a very little,” said Jemima.
“And she, of course she’s quite knocked up?” said he, with a groan.
“No. Miss Crisp’s taking a nap, that’s all; and mother’s keeping watch next door.”