Lister's Great Adventure

by Harold Bindloss

  CHAPTER I

  VERNON'S PLOT

  Lister occupied the end of a slate-flag bench on the lawn at Carrock,Mrs. Cartwright's house in Rannerdale. Rannerdale slopes to a lake inthe North Country, and the old house stands among trees and rocks in asheltered hollow. The sun shone on its lichened front, where a creeperwas going red; in the background birches with silver stems and leaveslike showers of gold gleamed against somber firs. Across the lawn andwinding road, the tranquil lake reflected bordering woods; and then longmountain slopes that faded from yellow and green to purple closed theview.

  While Lister waited for the tea Mrs. Cartwright had given him to cool hefelt the charm of house and dale was strong. Perhaps it owed somethingto the play of soft light and shade, for, as a rule, in Canada all wassharply cut. The English landscape had a strange elusive beauty thatgripped one hard, and melted as the fleecy clouds rolled by. When thelight came back color and line were as beautiful but not the same.

  There was no grass in Canada like the sweep of smooth English turf, andLister had not thought a house could give the sense of ancient calm onegot at Carrock. Since his boyhood he had not known a home; his restingplace had been a shack at a noisy construction camp, a room at a crowdedcheap hotel, and a berth beside a steamer's rattling engines. Then theshining silver on the tea-table was something new; he marked its beautyof line, and the blue and gold and brown pattern on the delicate chinahe was almost afraid to touch. In fact, all at Carrock was marked by astrange refinement and quiet charm.

  He liked his hosts. Mrs. Cartwright was large, rather fat, and placid,but he felt the house and all it stood for were hers by rightfulinheritance. Her son and daughter were not like that. Lister thoughtthey had cultivated their well-bred serenity and by doing so hadcultivated out some virile qualities of human nature. Grace Hyslop hadbeauty, but not much charm; Lister thought her cold, and imagined herprejudices were strong and conventional. Mortimer's talk and mannerswere colorlessly correct. Lister did not know yet if Hyslop was a prigor not.

  Cartwright was frankly puzzling. He looked like a sober countrygentleman, and this was not the type Lister had thought to meet. Hisclothes were fastidiously good, his voice had a level, restrained note,but his eye was like a hawk's, as Vernon had said. Now and then one sawa twinkle of ironical amusement and some of his movements were quick andvigorous. Lister thought Cartwright's blood was red.

  Vernon, lounging at the opposite end of the bench, talked about a dayHyslop and he had spent upon the rocks, and rather struck a foreignnote. He had not Hyslop's graceful languidness; he looked alert andhighly-strung. His thin face was too grave for Carrock and his glancetoo quick. Lister, listening to his remarks, was surprised to note thatHyslop was a bold mountaineer.

  "Oh, well," he said, with a deprecatory smile, when Vernon stopped,"this small group of mountains is all the wild belt we have got, and youlike to find a stranger keen about your favorite sport. Then yourkeenness was flattering. In your country, with its lonely woods andrivers running to the North, you have a field for strenuous sport andadventure."

  "The woods pull," Vernon agreed. "All the same, I'm a business man.Betting at the Board of Trade is my proper job and I've got to besatisfied with a week at a fishing camp now and then. Adventure is forthe pioneers, lumber men and railroad builders like my friend."

  Lister looked up. He did not see why Vernon talked about him.

  "My adventures don't count for much," he said. "Sometimes a car wentinto a muskeg and we had to hustle to dig her out. Sometimes the boysmade trouble about their pay. Railroad building is often dull."

  "I don't know if we're all modest in Canada, but my partner is," Vernonobserved. "If you want a romantic tale, persuade him to tell you how hegot the mark on his head."

  "Oh shucks!" said Lister. "I had sooner you had cut that out." He turnedto the others apologetically. "It was a dispute with a fellow on board atrain who threw me down the steps. I don't want to bore you with thetale."

  "The man was the famous crook, Shillito," Vernon remarked.

  Cartwright lifted his head and looked at Vernon hard. Then he looked atLister, who felt embarrassed and angry. He saw Grace and Mrs. Cartwrightwere curious and thought Hyslop's glance got keen.

  "If it will not bother Mr. Lister, we would like to hear his narrative,"said Cartwright quietly, but Lister got a hint of command.

  He narrated his adventure on the train, and although he tried to rob thestory of its romance, was surprised when he stopped for a moment. Vernonwas carelessly lighting a cigarette, but Lister saw his carelessness wasforced. When he got a light he crossed the grass, as if he meant tothrow the match over the hedge. Lister thought Cartwright watched Harrywith dry amusement. Mrs. Cartwright's look was obviously disturbed, butshe had not altogether lost her calm. One felt her calm was part of her,but the Hyslops' was cultivated. Lister imagined it cost them somethingto use control.

  "Go on," said Cartwright, rather sharply.

  Lister resumed, but presently Cartwright stopped him.

  "You imagined the girl was afraid of Shillito! What were your grounds?"

  "She was disturbed and declared she must get off the train. I think shemeant to jump off, although we were going fast. Then she asked me if theconductor could be bribed to stop."

  "Perhaps we can take it for granted she wanted to get away fromsomebody. Why did you surmise the man was Shillito?"

  "He came through the car afterwards, as if he tried to find the girl,and gave me a keen glance. When he came back I thought him angry anddisappointed. By and by I had better grounds for imagining he suspectedI had helped her."

  Cartwright pondered, but Lister did not think he doubted. It ratherlooked as if he weighed something carefully. The lines on his face gotdeeper and his look was thoughtful.

  "I understand the girl did not give you her name," he said. "What wasshe like? How was she dressed?"

  Lister was rather surprised to find he could not answer satisfactorily.It was not the girl's physical qualities but her emotions he had marked.He remembered the pluck with which she had struggled against the fearshe obviously felt, her impulsive trust when he offered help, and herrelief when she got into the locomotive cab. Although he had studied herat Montreal, it was her effort to play a part that impressed him most.

  "She was young, and I think attractive," he replied. "She wore a knittedcap and a kind of jersey a girl might use for boating. I thought shecame from a summer camp."

  Cartwright's face was inscrutable, but Lister saw the others' interestwas keen. Mrs. Cartwright's eyes were fixed on him and he got a hint ofsuspense. Although Grace was very quiet, a touch of color had come toher skin, as if she felt humiliated. Mortimer's pose was stiff and hiscontrol over done. Then Cartwright turned to his step-daughter.

  "Have you told Jones about the box of plants for Liverpool?"

  Grace's look indicated that she did not want to go, but Cartwright'sglance was insistent and she got up. Lister looked about and saw Vernonhad not come back. He was studying the plants in a border across thelawn. When Grace had gone Cartwright asked:

  "Can you remember the evening of the month and the time when you firstsaw the girl?"

  Lister fixed the date and added: "It was nearly ten o'clock. The porterhad just gone through the car and when he said my berth was ready Ilooked at my watch. He went to the next Pullman, and I thought he wasgetting busy late."

  Cartwright nodded and Mortimer glanced at him sharply, but next momentlooked imperturbable. Mrs. Cartwright's relief, however, was obvious.Her face had become animated and her hands trembled.

  "Thank you," said Cartwright. "Go on."

  Lister narrated his putting the girl on board the gravel train and Mrs.Cartwright interrupted.

  "Do you know if she had money?"

  "She had some. Enough to buy a ticket East."

  "It's strange," said Mrs. Cartwright, and then exclaimed: "You mean yougave her some?"

  "Oh, well," said Lister awkwardly, "I'd seen her look at her pu
rse andfrown, and as I helped her up the locomotive steps I pushed a few billsinto her hand. I don't think she knew they were paper money. She washighly-strung and anxious to get off before Shillito came along."

  Mrs. Cartwright gave him a look that moved him. Her eyes shone and heknew she was his friend.

  "The poor girl was strangely lucky when she met you," she said.

  Lister resumed his narrative, but it was plain the climax had passed.The others' interest was now polite, and he went on as fast as possible.He had begun to see a light and wanted to finish and get away. He didnot, however, see that while he told his artless tale he had drawn hischaracter. When he stopped Cartwright said:

  "Then you did not know her name?"

  "I don't know it yet," said Lister, as coolly as he could, but gotembarrassed when he saw Cartwright's smile.

  "You don't imagine Shillito rejoined her afterwards?"

  "No," said Lister firmly, "I think it's impossible. The gravel train wasgoing East, and when the police boarded the cars we had run somedistance West." He stopped for a moment, because he saw he was verydull. If his supposition were correct, there was something the othersought to know. "Besides," he resumed, "I met her not long since atMontreal."

  "At Montreal!" Mrs. Cartwright exclaimed.

  "At a shop where they sold _souvenirs_," Lister replied. "I didn'texpect to meet her; I went in to buy some enameled things. It was apretty good shop and the hotel clerk declared the people were all right.She knew me and we went to a tea-room. She left me at the door, and Ithink that's all."

  He got up. "I don't know if I have bored you, but I felt you wanted meto talk. Now I must get off, and I want to see Harry before I go."

  "Mr. Vernon does not seem to be about," Cartwright remarked with somedryness. "I'll go to the gate with you."

  Mrs. Cartwright gave Lister her hand and her glance was very kind. "Youwill come back? So long as you stop here I hope you will feel our houseis open to you."

  Hyslop got up, but Cartwright stopped him with a sign. He was quietwhile they crossed the lawn, but when they reached the wood by the roadhe said, "I imagine you know we owe you much. After a time, your effortsto use some tact were rather obvious. Well, the girl you helped is mystep-daughter."

  "At the beginning, I did not know this," Lister declared.

  "It was plain," said Cartwright, "Well, I agree with her mother--Barbarawas very lucky when she met you, but since you look embarrassed, we'lllet this go. Did she repay your loan?"

  "She wanted to pay me," said Lister. "I refused."

  "Why?" Cartwright asked, looking at him hard.

  Lister hesitated, "For one thing, I didn't know the sum. Then I knew herwages were not high. You ought to see I couldn't take the money."

  "You ought to have taken the money, for the girl's sake."

  "Oh," said Lister, "I think she knew I didn't refuse because I wantedher to feel she owed me something."

  "It's possible she did know," said Cartwright dryly. "You must try toremember the sum when you come again. Now I want the name of the shop atMontreal."

  Lister told him and added: "You mean to write to Miss Hyslop?"

  Cartwright smiled. "I'm going across as soon as possible to bring mystep-daughter home."