Your leaving Mrs. Noel Vanstone is of course out of the question.
There is no necessity for any such hard-hearted proceeding. The admiral
desires me to remind you that he is your oldest friend living, and that
his house is at your wife's disposal, as it has always been at yours.
In this great rambling-place she need dread no near association with
the sick-room; and, with all my uncle's oddities, I am sure she will not
think the offer of his friendship an offer to be despised.
"Have I told you already that I went to Aldborough to try and find a
clew to your whereabouts? I can't be at the trouble of looking back to
see; so, if I have told you, I tell you again. The truth is, I made
an acquaintance at Aldborough of whom you know something--at least by
report.
"After applying vainly at Sea View, I went to the hotel to inquire
about you. The landlady could give me no information; but the moment I
mentioned your name, she asked if I was related to you; and when I told
her I was your cousin, she said there was a young lady then at the hotel
whose name was Vanstone also, who was in great distress about a missing
relative, and who might prove of some use to me--or I to her--if we knew
of each other's errand at Aldborough.
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