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+<!DOCTYPE html>
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+<div><p class="subtitle">By <a class="reference external" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/author/3587"><span class="caps">GUY</span> <span class="caps">BOOTHBY</span></a></p>
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+<p>Author of “Dr. Nikola,” “The Beautiful White Devil,” etc., etc.</p>
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+<figure>
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+<img alt="/images/frontispiece.jpg" class="bookfig" src="/images/frontispiece.jpg">
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+</figure>
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+<aside class="topic">
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+<p class="topic-title">The Project Gutenberg EBook of A Bid for Fortune, by Guy Boothby</p>
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+<p>This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
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+almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or
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+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
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+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org</p>
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+<p>Title: A Bid for Fortune
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+or Dr. Nikola’s Vendetta</p>
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+<p>Author: <a class="reference external" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/author/3587">Guy Boothby</a></p>
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+<p>Release Date: May 29, 2007 [EBook #21640]</p>
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+<p>Language: English</p>
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+<p>Produced by Marilynda Fraser-Cunliffe, Mary Meehan and the
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+Online Distributed Proofreading Team at <a class="reference external" href="https://www.pgdp.net">https://www.pgdp.net</a></p>
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+<p>Originally published by:</p>
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+<p><span class="caps">WARD</span>, <span class="caps">LOCK</span> <span class="amp">&</span> <span class="caps">CO</span>., <span class="caps">LIMITED</span>
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+<span class="caps">LONDON</span>, <span class="caps">MELBOURNE</span> <span class="caps">AND</span> <span class="caps">TORONTO</span> 1918</p>
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+</aside>
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+<figure>
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+<img alt="/images/illus_001.jpg" class="bookfig" src="/images/illus_001.jpg">
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+</figure>
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+<section id="part-i">
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+<h1><span class="caps">PART</span> I</h1>
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+<section id="prologue">
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+<h2><span class="caps">PROLOGUE</span></h2>
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+<p><span class="smallcaps">The</span> manager of the new Imperial Restaurant on the Thames Embankment went
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+into his luxurious private office and shut the door. Having done so, he
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+first scratched his chin reflectively, and then took a letter from the
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+drawer in which it had reposed for more than two months and perused it
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+carefully. Though he was not aware of it, this was the thirtieth time he
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+had read it since breakfast that morning. And yet he was not a whit
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+nearer understanding it than he had been at the beginning. He turned it
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+over and scrutinized the back, where not a sign of writing was to be
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+seen; he held it up to the window, as if he might hope to discover
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+something from the water-mark; but there was nothing in either of these
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+places of a nature calculated to set his troubled mind at rest. Then he
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+took a magnificent repeater watch from his waistcoat pocket and glanced
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+at the dial; the hands stood at half-past seven. He immediately threw
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+the letter on the table, and as he did so his anxiety found relief in words.</p>
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+<p><span class="dquo">“</span>It’s really the most extraordinary affair I ever had to do with,” he
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+remarked. “And as I’ve been in the business just three-and-thirty years
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+at eleven a.m. next Monday morning, I ought to know something about it.
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+I only hope I’ve done right, that’s all.”</p>
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+<p>As he spoke, the chief bookkeeper, who had the treble advantage of being
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+tall, pretty, and just eight-and-twenty years of age, entered the room.
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+She noticed the open letter and the look upon her chief’s face, and her
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+curiosity was proportionately excited.</p>
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+<p><span class="dquo">“</span>You seem worried, Mr. McPherson,” she said tenderly, as she put down
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+the papers she had brought in for his signature.</p>
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+<p><span class="dquo">“</span>You have just hit it, Miss O’Sullivan,” he answered, pushing them
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+farther on to the table. “I am worried about many things, but
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+particularly about this letter.”</p>
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+<p>He handed the epistle to her, and she, being desirous of impressing him
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+with her business capabilities, read it with ostentatious care. But it
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+was noticeable that when she reached the signature she too turned back
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+to the beginning, and then deliberately read it over again. The manager
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+rose, crossed to the mantelpiece, and rang for the head waiter. Having
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+relieved his feelings in this way, he seated himself again at his
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+writing-table, put on his glasses, and stared at his companion, while
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+waiting for her to speak.</p>
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+<p><span class="dquo">“</span>It’s very funny,” she said. “Very funny indeed!”</p>
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+<p><span class="dquo">“</span>It’s the most extraordinary communication I have ever received,” he
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+replied with conviction. “You see it is written from Cuyaba, Brazil. The
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+date is three months ago to a day. Now I have taken the trouble to find
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+out where and what Cuyaba is.”</p>
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+<p>He made this confession with an air of conscious pride, and having done
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+so, laid himself back in his chair, stuck his thumbs into the armholes
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+of his waistcoat, and looked at his fair subordinate for approval. Nor
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+was he destined to be disappointed. He was a bachelor in possession of a
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+snug income, and she, besides being pretty, was a lady with a keen eye
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+to the main chance.</p>
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+<p><span class="dquo">“</span>And where <em>is</em> Cuyaba?” she asked humbly.</p>
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+<p><span class="dquo">“</span>Cuyaba,” he replied, rolling his tongue with considerable relish round
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+his unconscious mispronunciation of the name, “is a town almost on the
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+western or Bolivian border of Brazil. It is of moderate size, is
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+situated on the banks of the river Cuyaba, and is considerably connected
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+with the famous Brazilian Diamond Fields.”</p>
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+<p><span class="dquo">“</span>And does the writer of this letter live there?”</p>
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+<p><span class="dquo">“</span>I cannot say. He writes from there—that is enough for us.”</p>
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+<p><span class="dquo">“</span>And he orders dinner for four—here, in a private room overlooking the
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+river, three months ahead—punctually at eight o’clock, gives you a list
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+of the things he wants, and even arranges the decoration of the table.
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+Says he has never seen either of his three friends before; that one of
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+them hails from (here she consulted the letter again) Hang-chow, another
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+from Bloemfontein, while the third resides, at present, in England. Each
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+one is to present an ordinary visiting card with a red dot on it to the
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+porter in the hall, and to be shown to the room at once. I don’t
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+understand it at all.”</p>
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+<p>The manager paused for a moment, and then said deliberately,—”Hang-chow
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+is in China, Bloemfontein is in South Africa.”</p>
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+<p><span class="dquo">“</span>What a wonderful man you are, to be sure, Mr. McPherson! I never can
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+<em>think</em> how you manage to carry so much in your head.”</p>
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+<p>There spoke the true woman. And it was a move in the right direction,
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+for the manager was susceptible to her gentle influence, as she had
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+occasion to know.</p>
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+<p>At this juncture the head waiter appeared upon the scene, and took up a
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+position just inside the doorway, as if he were afraid of injuring the
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+carpet by coming farther.</p>
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+<p><span class="dquo">“</span>Is No. 22 ready, Williams?”</p>
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+<p><span class="dquo">“</span>Quite ready, sir. The wine is on the ice, and cook tells me he’ll be
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+ready to dish punctual to the moment.”</p>
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+<p><span class="dquo">“</span>The letter says, ‘no electric light; candles with red shades.’ Have you
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+put on those shades I got this morning?”</p>
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+<p><span class="dquo">“</span>Just seen it done this very minute, sir.”</p>
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+<p><span class="dquo">“</span>And let me see, there was one other thing.” He took the letter from the
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+chief bookkeeper’s hand and glanced at it. “Ah, yes, a porcelain saucer,
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+and a small jug of new milk upon the mantelpiece. An extraordinary
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+request, but has it been attended to?”</p>
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+<p><span class="dquo">“</span>I put it there myself, sir.”</p>
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+<p><span class="dquo">“</span>Who wait?”</p>
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+<p><span class="dquo">“</span>Jones, Edmunds, Brooks, and Tomkins.”</p>
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+<p><span class="dquo">“</span>Very good. Then I think that will do. Stay! You had better tell the
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+hall porter to look out for three gentlemen presenting plain visiting
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+cards with a little red spot on them. Let Brooks wait in the hall, and
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+when they arrive tell him to show them straight up to the room.”</p>
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+<p><span class="dquo">“</span>It shall be done, sir.”</p>
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+<p>The head waiter left the room, and the manager stretched himself in his
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+chair, yawned by way of showing his importance, and then said solemnly,—</p>
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+<p><span class="dquo">“</span>I don’t believe they’ll any of them turn up; but if they do, this Dr.
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+Nikola, whoever he may be, won’t be able to find fault with my arrangements.”</p>
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+<p>Then, leaving the dusty high road of Business, he and his companion
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+wandered in the shady bridle-paths of Love—to the end that when the
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+chief bookkeeper returned to her own department she had forgotten the
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+strange dinner party about to take place upstairs, and was busily
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+engaged upon a calculation as to how she would look in white satin and
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+orange blossoms, and, that settled, fell to wondering whether it was
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+true, as Miss Joyce, a subordinate, had been heard to declare, that the
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+manager had once shown himself partial to a certain widow with reputed
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+savings and a share in an extensive egg and dairy business.</p>
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+<p>At ten minutes to eight precisely a hansom drew up at the steps of the
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+hotel. As soon as it stopped, an undersized gentleman, with a clean
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+shaven countenance, a canonical corporation, and bow legs, dressed in a
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+decidedly clerical garb, alighted. He paid and discharged his cabman,
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+and then took from his ticket pocket an ordinary white visiting card,
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+which he presented to the gold-laced individual who had opened the
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+apron. The latter, having noted the red spot, called a waiter, and the
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+reverend gentleman was immediately escorted upstairs.</p>
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+<p>Hardly had the attendant time to return to his station in the hall,
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+before a second cab made its appearance, closely followed by a third.
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+Out of the second jumped a tall, active, well-built man of about thirty
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+years of age. He was dressed in evening dress of the latest fashion, and
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+to conceal it from the vulgar gaze, wore a large Inverness cape of heavy
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+texture. He also in his turn handed a white card to the porter, and,
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+having done so, proceeded into the hall, followed by the occupant of the
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+last cab, who had closely copied his example. This individual was also
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+in evening dress, but it was of a different stamp. It was old-fashioned
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+and had seen much use. The wearer, too, was taller than the ordinary run
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+of men, while it was noticeable that his hair was snow-white, and that
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+his face was deeply pitted with smallpox. After disposing of their hats
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+and coats in an ante-room, they reached room No. 22, where they found
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+the gentleman in clerical costume pacing impatiently up and down.</p>
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+<p>Left alone, the tallest of the trio, who for want of a better title we
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+may call the Best Dressed Man, took out his watch, and having glanced at
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+it, looked at his companions. “Gentlemen,” he said, with a slight
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+American accent, “it is three minutes to eight o’clock. My name is Eastover!”</p>
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+<p><span class="dquo">“</span>I’m glad to hear it, for I’m most uncommonly hungry,” said the next
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+tallest, whom I have already described as being so marked by disease.
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+“My name is Prendergast!”</p>
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+<p><span class="dquo">“</span>We only wait for our friend and host,” remarked the clerical gentleman,
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+as if he felt he ought to take a share in the conversation, and then, as
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+an afterthought, he continued, “My name is Baxter!”</p>
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+<p>They shook hands all round with marked cordiality, seated themselves
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+again, and took it in turns to examine the clock.</p>
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+<p><span class="dquo">“</span>Have you ever had the pleasure of meeting our host before?” asked Mr.
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+Baxter of Mr. Prendergast.</p>
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+<p><span class="dquo">“</span>Never,” replied that gentleman, with a shake of his head. “Perhaps Mr.
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+Eastover has been more fortunate?”</p>
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+<p><span class="dquo">“</span>Not I,” was the brief rejoinder. “I’ve had to do with him off and on
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+for longer than I care to reckon, but I’ve never set eyes on him up to date.”</p>
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+<p><span class="dquo">“</span>And where may he have been the first time you heard from him?”</p>
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+<p><span class="dquo">“</span>In Nashville, Tennessee,” said Eastover. “After that, Tahupapa, New
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+Zealand; after that, Papeete, in the Society Islands; then Pekin, China.
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+And you?”</p>
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+<p><span class="dquo">“</span>First time, Brussels; second, Monte Video; third, Mandalay, and then
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+the Gold Coast, Africa. It’s your turn, Mr. Baxter.”</p>
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+<p>The clergyman glanced at the timepiece. It was exactly eight o’clock.
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+“First time, Cabul, Afghanistan; second, Nijni Novgorod, Russia; third,
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+Wilcannia, Darling River, Australia; fourth, Valparaiso, Chili; fifth,
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+Nagasaki, Japan.”</p>
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+<p><span class="dquo">“</span>He is evidently a great traveller and a most mysterious person.”</p>
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+<p><span class="dquo">“</span>He is more than that,” said Eastover with conviction; “he is late for dinner!”</p>
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+<p>Prendergast looked at his watch.</p>
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+<p><span class="dquo">“</span>That clock is two minutes fast. Hark, there goes Big Ben! Eight exactly.”</p>
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+<p>As he spoke the door was thrown open and a voice announced “Dr. Nikola.”</p>
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+<p>The three men sprang to their feet simultaneously, with exclamations of
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+astonishment, as the man they had been discussing made his appearance.</p>
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+<p>It would take more time than I can spare the subject to give you an
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+adequate and inclusive description of the person who entered the room at
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+that moment. In stature he was slightly above the ordinary, his
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+shoulders were broad, his limbs perfectly shaped and plainly muscular,
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+but very slim. His head, which was magnificently set upon his shoulders,
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+was adorned with a profusion of glossy black hair; his face was
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+destitute of beard or moustache, and was of oval shape and handsome
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+moulding; while his skin was of a dark olive hue, a colour which
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+harmonized well with his piercing black eyes and pearly teeth. His hands
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+and feet were small, and the greatest dandy must have admitted that he
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+was irreproachably dressed, with a neatness that bordered on the
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+puritanical. In age he might have been anything from eight-and-twenty to
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+forty; in reality he was thirty-three. He advanced into the room and
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+walked with out-stretched hand directly across to where Eastover was
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+standing by the fireplace.</p>
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+<p><span class="dquo">“</span>Mr. Eastover, I feel certain,” he said, fixing his glittering eyes upon
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+the man he addressed, and allowing a curious smile to play upon his face.</p>
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+<p><span class="dquo">“</span>That is my name, Dr. Nikola,” the other answered with evident surprise.
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+“But how on earth can you distinguish me from your other guests?”</p>
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+<p><span class="dquo">“</span>Ah! it would surprise you if you knew. And Mr. Prendergast, and Mr.
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+Baxter. This is delightful; I hope I am not late. We had a collision in
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+the Channel this morning, and I was almost afraid I might not be up to
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+time. Dinner seems ready; shall we sit down to it?” They seated
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+themselves, and the meal commenced. The Imperial Restaurant has earned
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+an enviable reputation for doing things well, and the dinner that night
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+did not in any way detract from its lustre. But, delightful as it all
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+was, it was noticeable that the three guests paid more attention to
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+their host than to his excellent <em>menu</em>. As they had said before his
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+arrival, they had all had dealings with him for several years, but what
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+those dealings were they were careful not to describe. It was more than
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+possible that they hardly liked to remember them themselves.</p>
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+<p>When coffee had been served and the servants had withdrawn, Dr. Nikola
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+rose from the table, and went across to the massive sideboard. On it
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+stood a basket of very curious shape and workmanship. This he opened,
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+and as he did so, to the astonishment of his guests, an enormous cat, as
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+black as his master’s coat, leaped out on to the floor. The reason for
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+the saucer and jug of milk became evident.</p>
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+<p>Seating himself at the table again, the host followed the example of his
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+guests and lit a cigar, blowing a cloud of smoke luxuriously through his
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+delicately chiselled nostrils. His eyes wandered round the cornice of
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+the room, took in the pictures and decorations, and then came down to
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+meet the faces of his companions. As they did so, the black cat, having
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+finished its meal, sprang on to his shoulder to crouch there, watching
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+the three men through the curling smoke drift with its green blinking,
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+fiendish eyes. Dr. Nikola smiled as he noticed the effect the animal had
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+upon his guests.</p>
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+<p><span class="dquo">“</span>Now shall we get to business?” he said briskly.</p>
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+<p>The others almost simultaneously knocked the ashes off their cigars and
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+brought themselves to attention. Dr. Nikola’s dainty, languid manner
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+seemed to drop from him like a cloak, his eyes brightened, and his
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+voice, when he spoke, was clean cut as chiselled silver.</p>
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+<p><span class="dquo">“</span>You are doubtless anxious to be informed why I summoned you from all
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+parts of the globe to meet me here to-night? And it is very natural you
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+should be. But then, from what you know of me, you should not be
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+surprised at anything I do.”</p>
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+<p>His voice dropped back into its old tone of gentle languor. He drew in a
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+great breath of smoke and then sent it slowly out from his lips again.
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+His eyes were half closed, and he drummed with one finger on the table
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+edge. The cat looked through the smoke at the three men, and it seemed
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+to them that he grew every moment larger and more ferocious. Presently
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+his owner took him from his perch, and seating him on his knee fell to
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+stroking his fur, from head to tail, with his long slim fingers. It was
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+as if he were drawing inspiration for some deadly mischief from the
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+uncanny beast.</p>
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+<p><span class="dquo">“</span>To preface what I have to say to you, let me tell you that this is by
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+far the most important business for which I have ever required your
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+help. (Three slow strokes down the centre of the back, and one round
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+each ear.) When it first came into my mind I was at a loss who to trust
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+in the matter. I thought of Vendon, but I found Vendon was dead. I
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+thought of Brownlow, but Brownlow was no longer faithful. (Two strokes
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+down the back and two on the throat.) Then bit by bit I remembered you.
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+I was in Brazil at the time. So I sent for you. You came. So far so good.”</p>
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+<p>He rose, and crossed over to the fireplace. As he went the cat crawled
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+back to its original position on his shoulder. Then his voice changed
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+once more to its former business-like tone.</p>
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+<p><span class="dquo">“</span>I am not going to tell you very much about it. But from what I do tell
|
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+you, you will be able to gather a great deal and imagine the rest. To
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+begin with, there is a man living in this world to-day who has done me a
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+great and lasting injury. What that injury is is no concern of yours.
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+You would not understand if I told you. So we’ll leave that out of the
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+question. He is immensely rich. His cheque for £300,000 would be
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+honoured by his bank at any minute. Obviously he is a power. He has had
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+reason to know that I am pitting my wits against his, and he flatters
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+himself that so far he has got the better of me. That is because I am
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+drawing him on. I am maturing a plan which will make him a poor and a
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+very miserable man at one and the same time. If that scheme succeeds,
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+and I am satisfied with the way you three men have performed the parts I
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+shall call on you to play in it, I shall pay to each of you the sum of
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+£10,000. If it doesn’t succeed, then you will each receive a thousand
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+and your expenses. Do you follow me?”</p>
|
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+<p>It was evident from their faces that they hung upon his every word.</p>
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+<p><span class="dquo">“</span>But, remember, I demand from you your whole and entire labour. While
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+you are serving me you are mine body and soul. I know you are
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+trustworthy. I have had good proof that you are—pardon the
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+expression—unscrupulous, and I flatter myself you are silent. What is
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+more, I shall tell you nothing beyond what is necessary for the carrying
|
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+out of my scheme, so that you could not betray me if you would. Now for
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+my plans!”</p>
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+<p>He sat down again and took a paper from his pocket. Having perused it,
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+he turned to Eastover.</p>
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+<p><span class="dquo">“</span>You will leave at once—that is to say, by the boat on Wednesday—for
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+Sydney. You will book your passage to-morrow morning, first thing, and
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+join her in Plymouth. You will meet me to-morrow evening at an address I
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+will send you, and receive your final instructions. Good-night.”</p>
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+<p>Seeing that he was expected to go, Eastover rose, shook hands, and left
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+the room without a word. He was too astonished to hesitate or to say anything.</p>
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+<p>Nikola took another letter from his pocket and turned to Prendergast.
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+“<em>You</em> will go down to Dover to-night, cross to Paris to-morrow morning,
|
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+and leave this letter personally at the address you will find written on
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+it. On Thursday, at half-past two precisely, you will deliver me an
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+answer in the porch at Charing Cross. You will find sufficient money in
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+that envelope to pay all your expenses. Now go!”</p>
|
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+<p><span class="dquo">“</span>At half-past two you shall have your answer. Good-night.”</p>
|
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+<p><span class="dquo">“</span>Good-night.”</p>
|
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+<p>When Prendergast had left the room, Dr. Nikola lit another cigar and
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+turned his attentions to Mr. Baxter.</p>
|
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+<p><span class="dquo">“</span>Six months ago, Mr. Baxter, I found for you a situation as tutor to the
|
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+young Marquis of Beckenham. You still hold it, I suppose?”</p>
|
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+<p><span class="dquo">“</span>I do.”</p>
|
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+<p><span class="dquo">“</span>Is the father well disposed towards you?”</p>
|
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+<p><span class="dquo">“</span>In every way. I have done my best to ingratiate myself with him. That
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+was one of your instructions.”</p>
|
|
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+<p><span class="dquo">“</span>Yes, yes! But I was not certain that you would succeed. If the old man
|
|
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|
+is anything like what he was when I last met him he must still be a
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+difficult person to deal with. Does the boy like you?”</p>
|
|
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|
+<p><span class="dquo">“</span>I hope so.”</p>
|
|
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|
+<p><span class="dquo">“</span>Have you brought me his photograph as I directed?”</p>
|
|
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|
+<p><span class="dquo">“</span>I have. Here it is.”</p>
|
|
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|
+<p>Baxter took a photograph from his pocket and handed it across the table.</p>
|
|
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|
+<p><span class="dquo">“</span>Good. You have done very well, Mr. Baxter. I am pleased with you.
|
|
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|
+To-morrow morning you will go back to Yorkshire——”</p>
|
|
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|
+<p><span class="dquo">“</span>I beg your pardon, Bournemouth. His Grace owns a house near
|
|
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|
+Bournemouth, which he occupies during the summer months.”</p>
|
|
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|
+<p><span class="dquo">“</span>Very well—then to-morrow morning you will go back to Bournemouth and
|
|
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|
+continue to ingratiate yourself with father and son. You will also begin
|
|
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|
+to implant in the boy’s mind a desire for travel. Don’t let him become
|
|
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|
+aware that his desire has its source in you—but do not fail to foster
|
|
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|
+it all you can. I will communicate with you further in a day or two. Now go.”</p>
|
|
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|
+<p>Baxter in his turn left the room. The door closed. Dr. Nikola picked up
|
|
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|
+the photograph and studied it.</p>
|
|
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|
+<p><span class="dquo">“</span>The likeness is unmistakable—or it ought to be. My friend, my very
|
|
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|
+dear friend, Wetherell, my toils are closing on you. My arrangements are
|
|
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|
+perfecting themselves admirably. Presently, when all is complete, I
|
|
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|
+shall press the lever, the machinery will be set in motion, and you will
|
|
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|
+find yourself being slowly but surely ground into powder. Then you will
|
|
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|
+hand over what I want, and be sorry you thought fit to baulk Dr. Nikola!”</p>
|
|
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|
+<p>He rang the bell and ordered his bill. This duty discharged, he placed
|
|
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|
+the cat back in its prison, shut the lid, descended with the basket to
|
|
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|
+the hall, and called a hansom. The porter inquired to what address he
|
|
341
|
+should order the cabman to drive. Dr. Nikola did not reply for a moment,
|
|
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|
+then he said, as if he had been thinking something out: “The <em>Green
|
|
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|
+Sailor</em> public-house, East India Dock Road.”</p>
|
|
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|
+<hr class="docutils">
|
|
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|
+<p>You can read the rest of “A Bid For Fortune; Or, Dr. Nikola’s Vendetta” at <a class="reference external" href="https://archive.org/stream/bidforfortunenov00bootiala#page/12/mode/2up">Open Library</a></p>
|
|
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|
+</section>
|
|
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|
+</section>
|
|
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|
+</div>
|