The old thief! She brought letters to the Guv'nor!
That's all! He's no special fancy to her, and he set Major Hawke
on just to do the amiable. The Guv'nor's far too old to beau the
lady around. Marry?--not him! And Miss Nadine's just as silent as
a flower in one of them gold vases. All she does is to look pretty
and keep still, poor lamb. Her music, her books, her flowers, her
birds. And as to Major Hawke and this Madame Louison--I've the
Guv'nor's own orders they are never to see Miss Nadine. That is,
Hawke not at all, and the lady only when Miss Delande is present!
Them's my solid orders, and the old Guv'nor put my eye out with a
ten-pound note--the first I ever got from him. No, Captain! You've
done the handsome by me, and I give you the straight tip--wasn't
I in the old Eighth Hussars with your father when we charged the
rebel camp at Lucknow? I've got a tulwar yet that I cut out of the
hand of a 'pandy' who was hacking away at Colonel Hardwicke."
"How did you get it, Simpson?" cried the young Captain.
"I got arm and all! Took it off with a right cut! You may know,
Cap'n, that we ground our sabers in those old days! No, sir! Miss
Nadine's for none of them people, and Hawke is only in the house for
business. He's a deep one--is that same Hawke," concluded Simpson,
pocketing his note.
Captain Hardwicke began to see the light dawning. "Alan Hawke has
then some secret business scheme with the old money grubber that's
all," mused the young engineer officer, happy at heart.
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