Percival Keene

by Frederick Marryat

  CHAPTER FORTY FIVE.

  The next morning I was pale and feverish, which they observed withconcern, Minnie was sitting by me, and Mr Vanderwelt had left the room,when she said, "How very pale you are, and your hand is so hot; I wishthe doctor would come."

  "I could not sleep last night, Minnie--and it was all your fault."

  "My fault!"

  "Yes, your fault; for I could not sleep for thinking of you; I thoughtyou were looking at me as you do now the whole night."

  Minnie blushed, and I kissed her hand.

  As soon as my wound was dressed, I requested writing materials, andwrote to the Admiralty, giving an account of what had occurred since Iquitted Heligoland. (I had written to inform them of the loss of thefrigate when I was on the island). I stated in my despatches that mywound would probably confine me for some weeks; but as soon as I wasable to be moved, I should return to England to await their orders. Ialso wrote to my mother and Mr Warden. I informed the latter of whathad passed, and the delay which would be occasioned by my wound, andrequested him to write to me more fully as to the death of Lord deVersely, and any other particulars which might interest me.

  Having sealed these despatches, and entrusted them to the care of MrVanderwelt, my mind was relieved, and I had nothing to do but to thinkof and talk to Minnie. That my progress in her affections was rapid,was not to be wondered at, her attachment to me having commenced soearly; and as her father was evidently pleased at our increasingintimacy, in a fortnight after my arrival at Hamburg, Minnie hadconsented to be mine, and her father had joined our hands, and given ushis blessing.

  As I now had no secrets from them, I detailed my whole history, thecause of Lord de Versely's patronage, and the mystery of my birth. Iopened the seal-skin pouch to show them Lord de Versely's letter to mymother, and stated what had been the object of my ambition through life,and how great was my disappointment at my hopes being overthrown by thedeath of his lordship.

  "My dear Percival," said old Mr Vanderwelt, after I had concluded mynarrative, "you have been pursuing a shadow, although the pursuit hascalled forth all your energies, and led to your advancement. You havethe substance. You have wealth more than sufficient, for you know howrich I am. You have reputation, which is better than wealth, and youhave now, I trust, a fair prospect of domestic happiness; for Minniewill be as good a wife as she has been a daughter. What, then, do youdesire? A name. And what is that? Nothing. If you do not like yourpresent name, from its association with your putative father of loworigin, change it to mine. You will receive the fortune of an heiress,which will fully warrant your so doing. At all events, let not yourpride stand in the way of your happiness. We cannot expect everythingin this world. You have much to be thankful to Heaven for, and you mustnot repine because you cannot obtain all."

  "I have so ardently desired it all my life; it has been the sole objectof my ambition," replied I, "and I cannot but severely feel thedisappointment."

  "Granted; but you must bear the disappointment, or rather you mustforget it; regret for what cannot be obtained is not only unavailing,but, I may say, it is sinful. You have much to thank God for."

  "I have indeed, sir," replied I, as I kissed his daughter; "and I willnot repine. I will take your name when you give me Minnie, and I willthink no more about that of Delmar."

  After this conversation, the subject was not renewed. I felt too happywith Minnie's love to care much about anything else; my ambition meltedaway before it, and I looked forward to the time when I might embraceher as my own.

  My wound healed rapidly; I had been a month at Hamburg, and was able tolimp about a little, when one day Cross came in with a packet of lettersfrom England.

  There was one from the Admiralty, acknowledging the receipt of my twoletters, one announcing the loss of the Circe, and the other mysubsequent adventures, desiring me to come home as soon as my woundwould permit me, to have the cause of the loss of the Circe investigatedby a court-martial; that of course: one from my mother, thanking Heaventhat I had escaped so many dangers with only a bullet in my leg, andstating her intention of going up to town to see me as soon as she heardof my arrival; the third was a voluminous epistle from Mr Warden, whichI shall give to the reader in his own words.

  "MY DEAR CAPTAIN KEENE:--

  "I received your two letters, the first, acquainting me with your miraculous preservation after the loss of your frigate, and the other with your subsequent adventures on _terra firma_. You appear to me to have a charmed life! and as there is now every prospect of a speedy termination to this long and devastating war, I hope you will live many days. I did not enter into many particulars as to Lord de Versely's death, as it was so sudden; the property left you is not perhaps of so much value in itself, as it is as a mark of his regard and esteem. Nevertheless, if ever you sit down quietly and take a wife, you will find that it will save you a few thousands in furnishing and decorating; the plate, pictures, and objects _de vertu_, as they are termed, are really valuable, and I know that you will not part with them, bequeathed as they have been by your friend and patron.

  "I must now refer to particulars of more consequence. You know that, as a legal adviser, my lips are supposed to be sealed, and they would have remained so now, had it not been that circumstances have occurred which warrant my disclosure; indeed, I may say that I have permission to speak plainly, as you have to repel charges against you which, if not disproved, may seriously affect your future interests. Know then, that when you were last at Madeline Hall, I was sent for to draw up the will of the Honourable Miss Delmar, and I then discovered that the will which had been made in favour of Lord de Versely, to whom Miss Delmar had left everything, was by his express desire to be altered in your favour; and at the same time the secret of your birth was confided to me. You will see, therefore, that Lord de Versely did not neglect your interests. The de Versely property he could not leave you, but he did what he could in your favour. This will was signed, sealed, and attested, and is now in my possession; and as the old lady is very shakey, and something approaching to imbecile, I considered that in a short time I should have to congratulate you upon your succession to this fine property, which is a clear 8,000 pounds per annum.

  "You must also know, that Colonel Delmar, whom you also met here, and who accompanied you to Portsmouth, has always hoped that he would be the heir of the old lady; and, indeed, had you not stepped in, I have no doubt but eventually such would have been the case. It appears that he has, by some means, discovered that you have ousted him, and since you sailed he has returned to Madeline Hall, and has so unsettled the old lady, by reporting that you are an impostor, and no relation by blood, that she has given me instructions to make a new will in his favour. By what means he has prevailed upon her I cannot tell: the chief support of his assertion rests upon some letters, which he has either surreptitiously obtained or forged, written by your mother and addressed to you. Now that your mother has been supposed to be dead many years I knew well for Lord de Versely told me so. The old lady has shown me these letters, which certainly appear authentic; and she says, that if you have deceived her and Lord de Versely as to your mother's death, you have deceived them in everything else, and that she does not now believe that you are the son of her nephew. As I hinted before, the old lady is almost in her dotage, and cannot well be reasoned with, for she is very positive. I argued as long as I could with her, but in vain. At last she consented to stop proceedings until I heard from you, saying, `If I can have any proof under my nephew's own hand that Percival is his son, I will be content; but without that I sign the new will.'

  "Such is the state of affairs, that you have little chance if such a document cannot be produced, I feel certain; at all events, I have gained delay which we lawyers always aim at. I only wish the old lady would take a sudden departure, and leave the question as unsettled as it is. Had Lord de Versely not been so suddenly called away, thi
s would never have happened; as it is, we must make the best fight we can. At present the colonel has it all his own way. Pray write immediately, and explain as much as you can of this strange affair and let me know what steps you think it advisable to be taken.--Yours very truly,

  "F. WARDEN."

  CHAPTER FORTY SIX.

  The receipt of this letter was extremely mortifying to me. I could nothelp feeling that if I lost the fine property which had been intendedfor me, I lost it chiefly by the deceit practised relative to mymother's supposed death, and that if I did lose the estate inconsequence, it was a proper punishment. At the same time, I felt not alittle indignant at the conduct of Colonel Delmar. I now understood whyit was that he was talking with Mr Warden's clerk when I passed bythem; and I also felt certain that he must have taken advantage of mysituation at Portsmouth, and have opened my desk and stolen the lettersfrom my mother. For this I resolved to call him to account, under anycircumstances (that is, whether he or I became the heir to the oldlady), as soon as I could fall in with him. Although I was far fromdespising the property which I was now likely to lose, yet I was moreactuated in my wish to regain it by my enmity towards him, and Iimmediately resolved upon what I would do.

  As I was still unfit to travel, and, moreover, was resolved not to leaveHamburg without Minnie as my wife, I sent for Cross, and telling him infew words, what had taken place, asked him if he would immediately startfor England, which he gladly consented to do. "The old lady requires,it seems, proof from Lord de Versely's own hand that I am his son;fortunately, that is in my power to give; so do you take this, and assoon as you arrive in England make all haste to Mr Warden's and put itinto his own hands." I then took off the seal-skin pouch containingLord de Versely's letter to my mother, and confided it to his care. Atthe same time I wrote a long letter to Mr Warden explaining as far as Icould the means which the colonel had used to get possession of theletters, and the reason which induced me to make his lordship believethat my mother was dead. I did not attempt to extenuate my conduct; onthe contrary, I severely blamed myself for my deception, andacknowledged that if I lost the estate it was nothing more than Ideserved.

  Cross made all haste, and sailed the next morning. Having put thisaffair in train, I had nothing to do but to give all my thoughts toMinnie. In another fortnight I was completely recovered, and then Imentioned to Mr Vanderwelt my anxiety that the marriage should takeplace. No difficulties were raised; and it was settled that on that dayweek I should lead my Minnie to the altar. I thought that the weekwould never expire; but, like all other weeks, it died a natural deathat last, and we were united. The _fete_ was over, the company had allleft us, and we were again alone, and I held my dearest Minnie in myarms, when Mr Vanderwelt brought me in a letter from England. It wasfrom Mr Warden, and I hastily opened it. Minnie shared my impatience,and read over my shoulder. The contents were as follows:--

  "MY DEAR CAPTAIN KEENE,

  "Most fortunate it was for you that you have preserved that letter; but I must not anticipate. On receiving it from Cross I immediately went with it to the old lady, and presented it to her. I did more,--I read over your letter in which you stated your reasons for making Lord de Versely believe that your mother was dead. The old lady, who is now very far gone in her intellect, could hardly understand me. However, her nephew's handwriting roused her up a little, and she said, `Well, well--I see--I must think about it. I won't decide. I must hear what the colonel says.' Now, this is what I did not wish her to do; but she was positive, and I was obliged to leave her. The colonel was sent for; but I do not know what the result was, or rather might have been, as fortune stood your friend in a most unexpected way.

  "As I went out, I perceived two gentlemen arrive in a post-chaise. One of them appeared very ill and feeble, hardly able to walk up the steps. They inquired for Colonel Delmar, and were shown into a sitting-room, until he came out of Mrs Delmar's apartment. I saw him come out; and there was so much satisfaction in his countenance, that I felt sure that he had gained over the old lady. And I went home, resolving that I would burn the new will, which had not been signed, if it were only to gain the delay of having to make it over again. But the next morning an express arrived for me to go immediately to the Hall. I did so, but I did not take the new will with me, as I felt certain that if I had so done, it would have been signed that day. But I was mistaken: I had been sent for on account of the death of Colonel Delmar, who had that morning fallen in a duel with Major Stapleton, the officer who fought with you. It appears that Captain Green had informed the major of the language used by the colonel when Major S was supposed to be dead; and that the major, who has been very ill ever since, only waited till he was able to stand to demand satisfaction of the colonel. It was the major with his friend whom I met as I left the Hall the day before. They fought at daylight, and both fell. The major, however, lived long enough to acknowledge that the duel with you had been an arranged thing between him and the colonel, that you might be put out of the way, after the information the colonel had received from my clerk, and that the colonel was to have rewarded him handsomely if he had sent you into the other world. I suspect, after this, that the fowling-piece going off in the cover was not quite so accidental as was supposed. However, the colonel is out of your way now, and the old lady has received such a shock, that there is no fear of her altering the will; indeed, if she attempted it, I doubt if it would be valid, as she is now quite gone in her intellect. I have, therefore, destroyed the one not signed; and have no doubt, but that in a very few weeks I may have to congratulate you upon your succession to this property. I think that the sooner you can come home the better, and I advise you to take up your quarters at Madeline Hall, for possession is nine points of the law, and you can keep off all trespassers.--Yours most truly,

  "F. WARDEN."

  "Well, Minnie dearest, I may congratulate you, I believe, as the lady ofMadeline Hall," said I, folding up the letter.

  "Yes, Percival, but there is a postscript overleaf, which you have notread."

  I turned back to the letter.

  "PS. I quite forgot to tell you that there is a condition attached to your taking possession of the property, which, as it was at the particular request of Lord de Versely, I presume you will not object to, which is--that you assume the arms and name of Delmar."

  THE END.