The Wicked Marquis Part 6

"Through no neglect of ours, I a.s.sure your lords.h.i.+p," Mr. Wadham insisted gravely. "You will remember that we wrote to you last October, pointing out that the yield from the estates was insufficient, without the help of the bank, to meet the interest on the mortgages, and that, amongst other claims which we were obliged to leave over, we should be unable to forward the usual cheque to the young lady in question."

The Marquis cleared his throat and tapped with his long forefingers upon the desk. It was a curious circ.u.mstance that, although both Mr.

Wadham, Senior, and Junior had done more than their duty towards their distinguished client, each had at that moment the feeling of a criminal.

"You are, I believe, perfectly well aware, Mr. Wadham," the Marquis declared, "that I never read your letters."

Mr. Wadham, Senior, coughed. His son thrust both hands into his trousers pockets. The statement was unanswerable.

"I was therefore," the Marquis continued severely, "in complete ignorance of your failure to carry out my instructions."

Mr. Wadham, Junior, less affected than his father by tradition, and priding himself more upon that negligible gift of common sense, interposed respectfully but firmly.

"We can scarcely be responsible," he pointed out, "for your lords.h.i.+p's indisposition to read letters containing business information of importance."

The Marquis changed his position slightly and looked at the speaker.

Mr. Wadham, Junior, became during the next few seconds profoundly impressed with the irrelevance, almost the impertinence of his words.

"I should have imagined," the former said severely, "that my habits are well-known to the members of a firm whose connection with my family is almost historical."

"We should have waited upon your lords.h.i.+p," Mr. Wadham, Senior, admitted. "But with reference to the case of this young lady, not hearing from your lords.h.i.+p, we wrote to her, very politely, indicating the great difficulties which we had to face in the management of the Mandeleys estates, owing to the abnormal agricultural depression, and we promised to send her a cheque as soon as such a step became possible. In reply we heard from her--a most ladylike and reasonable letter it was--stating that owing to recent literary successes, and to your lords.h.i.+p's generosity through so many years, she was only too glad of the opportunity to beg us to cease from forwarding the quarterly amount as. .h.i.therto. Under those circ.u.mstances, we have devoted such small sums of money as have come into our hands to more vital purposes."

"I suppose it did not occur to you," the Marquis observed, "that I am the person to decide what is or is not vital in the disposition of my own moneys."

"That is a fact which we should not presume to dispute," the lawyer admitted, "but I should like to point out that, on the next occasion when we had a little money in hand, your household steward, Mr.

Harrison, was here in urgent need of a thousand pounds for the payment of domestic bills connected with the establishment in Grosvenor Square."

"It appears to me," the Marquis said, with a trace of irritability in his tone, "that the greater part of my income goes in paying bills."

The complaint was one which for the moment left Mr. Wadham speechless.

He was vaguely conscious that an adequate reply existed, but it eluded him. His son, who had adopted the att.i.tude of being outside the discussion, was engaged in an abortive attempt to appear as much at ease in his own office as this client of theirs certainly was.

"I will discuss the matter of Miss Hannaway's future allowance with that young lady, and let you know the result," the Marquis announced.

"In the meantime, how do we stand for ready money?"

"Ready money, your lords.h.i.+p!" his interlocutor gasped.

"Precisely," the Marquis a.s.sented. "It is, I believe, a few days after the period when my tenants usually pay their rents."

"Your lords.h.i.+p," Mr. Wadham said, speaking with every attempt at gravity, "if every one of your tenants paid their full rent and brought it into this office at the present moment, we should still be unable to pay the interest on the mortgages due next month, without further advances from the bank."

"These mortgages," the Marquis remarked thoughtfully, "are a nuisance."

So self-evident a fact seemed to leave little room for comment or denial. The Marquis frowned a little more severely and withdrew his forefingers from the desk.

"Figures, I fear, only confuse me," he confessed, "but for the sake of curiosity, what do my quarterly rents amount to?"

"Between seven and eight thousand pounds, according to deductions, your lords.h.i.+p," was the prompt reply. "That sum I presume will be coming in from your agent, Mr. Merridrew, within the course of a few days. The interest upon the mortgages amounts to perhaps a thousand pounds less than that sum. That thousand pounds, I may be permitted to point out to your lords.h.i.+p, is all that remains for the carrying on of your Grosvenor Square establishment, and for such disburs.e.m.e.nts as are necessary at Mandeleys."

"It is shameful," the Marquis declared severely, "that any one should be allowed to antic.i.p.ate their income in this way. Mortgages are most vicious inst.i.tutions."

Mr. Wadham coughed.

"Your lords.h.i.+p's expenditure, some ten or fifteen years ago, rendered them first necessary. After that there was the unfortunate speculation in the tin mines--"

"That will do, Mr. Wadham," his client interrupted. "All I desire to know from you further is a statement of the approximate sum required to clear off the mortgages upon the Mandeleys estates?"

Mr. Wadham, Senior, looked a little startled. His son stopped whistling under his breath and leaned forward in his chair.

"Clear off the mortgages," he repeated.

"Precisely!"

"The exact figures," was the somewhat hesitating p.r.o.nouncement, "would require a quarter of an hour's study, but I should say that a sum of two hundred and twenty thousand pounds would be required."

"I have not a head for figures," the Marquis acknowledged gravely, "but the amount seems trifling. I shall wish you good-day now, gentlemen.

Two hundred and twenty thousand, I think you said, Mr. Wadham?"

"That is as near the amount as possible," the lawyer admitted.

The Marquis drew on his gloves, a sign that he did not intend to honour his adviser with any familiar form of farewell. He inclined his head slightly to Mr. Wadham, and more slightly still to Mr. Wadham, Junior, who was holding open the door. The small boy, who was on the alert, escorted him to the front steps, and received with delight a gracious word of thanks for his attentions. So the Marquis took his departure.

Mr. Wadham, Junior, closed the door and threw himself into the chair which had been occupied by their distinguished client. There was a faint perfume of lavender water remaining in the atmosphere. His eyes wandered around the further rows of tin boxes which enc.u.mbered the wall.

"I suppose," he murmured, "it's a great thing to have a Marquis for one's client."

"I suppose it is," Mr. Wadham, Senior, a.s.sented gloomily.

"Father, do you ever feel at ease with him?" his son asked curiously.

"Do you ever feel as though you were talking to a real human being, of the same flesh and blood as yourself?"

"Never for a single moment," was the vigorous reply. "If I felt like that, John, do you know what I should do? No? Well, then, I'll tell you. I should have those tin boxes taken out, one by one, and stacked in the hall. I should say to him, as plainly as I am saying it to you--'We lose money every year by your business, Marquis. We've had our turn. Try some one else--and go to the Devil!'"

"But you couldn't do it!" Mr. Wadham, Junior, observed disconsolately.

"I couldn't," his father agreed, with a note of subdued melancholy in his tone.

CHAPTER VI

Lady Margaret, who chanced to be the first arrival on the night of the dinner party in David Thain's honour, contemplated her sister admiringly. Let.i.tia was wearing a gown of ivory satin, a form of attire which seemed always to bring with it almost startling reminiscences of her Italian ancestry.

"So glad to find you alone, Letty," she remarked, as she sank into the most comfortable of the easy chairs. "There's something I've been wanting to ask you for weeks. Bob put it into my head again this afternoon."

"What is it, dear?" Let.i.tia enquired.

"Why don't you marry Charlie Grantham?" her sister demanded abruptly.