“I had a letter from Moreno this morning. He tells me that the design against your brother has temporarily dropped into abeyance. They had a very great coup on—that has failed. He has reason to suspect that they will now turn their attention to Mr Rossett.”
The tears coursed slowly down Mary’s face. The Earl slumbered on peacefully.
Then she raised her head. Her eyes flashed. She looked angrily at her sleeping father.
“Oh, our poor Guy. And it is his fault,”—she pointed at the somnolent Earl—“his fault entirely. He wanted to separate him from Isobel, because he thought she was not good enough for him. He went to Greatorex, and with his influence he got this post at Madrid—and he has sent him to his death.” Farquhar felt very sympathetic. No man can very properly appreciate his successful rival. But he was forced to admit that there was something in Guy Rossett that appealed alike to men and women.
“Now listen, Lady Mary! Moreno tells me a lot, because to a certain extent I have been in it from the beginning. I won’t bore you with details. Anyway, Moreno says he is quite certain he can save your brother. Perhaps Moreno may be a little too cocksure, he is a very vain sort of fellow. He goes so far as to hint that he might require my assistance.”
Mary looked puzzled. “Your assistance! But where do you come in, in this awful mix-up?”
“It is perhaps a little difficult to explain.” It was one of the few occasions in his life on which the self-possessed young barrister had felt embarrassed. “It is, perhaps, a little difficult to explain,” he repeated. “Moreno and I are very old friends. He was one night in my chambers. He extracted a promise from me that, if he called upon me, I would help your brother.”
Mary shot at him a swift and penetrating glance. “I can understand, Mr Farquhar, that you and Mr Moreno are old friends, that you owe many a good turn to one another. But my brother is nothing to you. Why should you put yourself out of the way for him?”
Farquhar temporised. “One sometimes gives promises rather rashly, Lady Mary.”
There was a long pause before the woman spoke.