Denbighshire Free Press

tALL RIGHTS BESEBVEDj A CHRISTMAS RAID. By JEAN MiDDLEJIASS. Such a terrible tiling lias happened, Maurice. 1 don't believe we shall ever be married." "My Lily, wlmt is it? and Sir Maurice Caider took the pretty daughter of Lord Bernard in his arms. He had just entered the C'astle dining- room, where sorrowing Lily was standing by the window. She, however, wriggled herself away from him as she went on in rather an awed 'tone. "The old vase that stood on the table in the inner hall has been taken away." "Good gracious! is that all? I began to think some dreadful event had happened." You do not think that a dreadful event. All Maurice, you arc not a Bernard." Bui, who has taken it? I do not under- shied what it means." Stolen, my fattier thinks. Ah there will be no marriage, 110 Christmas festivities." "But why not? Why should the stealing of that ugly old rase prevent our marriage a.ndChri.-tmasjrys?" Iiu;h, 1 iiisli don't pronounce the word 1 ugly in connection with that wonderful old j vase. Don't you know it is the mascot of the Bernard"—has guarded the fe.inily for cen- turies? Sir Maurice laughed. He was not in the least superstitious, and he believed that all tins fuss about an old stone vase was mere superstition, which he hoped a few kisses would drive away from his pretty fiancee. The day wss a bright one in early Decem- ber, and the sun, as it sparkled among the now le? floss boughs, rendered the scene around Castle Bernard glad and gay. No symptom IK>*e of trouble being brought about by the losing of an old vase, prized though it ir. ight be, with its engraving of the reaper, with its scythe and its motto "Time will avenge." Sir II anrieo Calder had always hated that old vast?, and was not sorry that it had dis- appeared. Throw evil onions tn the whirls, my love, J and come ojt inio the svuilit gardens, wh^re Í!JC S'1n fc,n', 81.1¡"°!i: l!}(1 tne whole :,CCl1e carols to us of li^pe ond joy." But Lily, fervently though she loved Maurice, was not easily distracted from the calamity she believed had fallen on her house. Maurice was wise and good and kind but he was not a Bernard. He eonkl not, there- fore. see how grave and serious was the loss her family had sustained, and how it might -and probably would—affect their own future lives. Lord Bernard had gone to the servants' quarters, where he was examining everyone with scrupulous care, in order to ascertain if any stronger had l oan ??en about the Casthf, or if the theft could bo t r rcd to some spite in h i.3 own household. Till Lily had heard what Lord Bernard had to report she would not consent to absent herself. While they were still standing together by the window they were startled by an agonised shout, that ei-fjeed through the whole Castle, and even Sir Mam-ice, calm, practical man though he was, felt his arms tremble, as the -half-fainting Lily fell into them. self rushed into the room as one distraught. "My boy—my fiv:yoar-old Rupert—lie is gone," she said, disjointed!}". Rupert gone This was a far more s-rious matter, and it puzzled and awakened Sir Maurice. lie laid the fainting Lily on the sofa, and gave his full attention to the mother. But no common-tense view was she capable of taking; that he was gÔ¡¡C- g011" i- itli the \ase," was all she could repeat. And, ques- tion though he might, lie could get no reason- able answer about the child's attendants and their habits. Where is Lord Bernard?" he asked, hoping he would be able to throw some light 011 the mystery. "Having the lake dragged, to see if the boy has been drowned." This view of the case was of the gloomiest. It seemed indeed .as it the Christi-rs fes- tivities and the wedding, fixed for New Year's Day, would of necessity be both post- poned. The lake was shallow, being filled from a reservoir in the grounds, and it v.as toon discovered th;;t neither Rupert nor the vase had been thrown inio the watar. Lord Bernard, when lie eavee in with the news, was scarcely 'ess unreasonable than the womenfolk. Though usually a calm, steady- going man, he was so upset that he did not seem capable of taking any further stens for the recovery of the child. The whole respon- sibility then fell upon Sir Maurice, who, for His own sake, was as interested hi the matter as were the Bernards themselves. Lord Bernard, having had the lake searched, seemed to think he Iwc1 done all that could be done, and ""t staring at the others with wide-open, meaningless eyes, in a state Of utter stupefaction. That he should take the Matter in hand was then, Sir Maurice saw, quite imperative. Leave it to me," he said, putting his hand on Lord Bernard's shoulder. i will find that boy o" die in the finding; but no questions must be asked, and I must be free to act as I see fit." Lord Bernard stared at him as though he did not quite understand, and murmured in a low tone: "Time will avenge." Sir Maurice, though he had scarcely as yet gauged his own powers, was a born detective. Time will avenge," the motto en the vase —vase and boy both gone-—here was a clre. He did net. however, say more than Tim • shall avenge, mv Lord. Be c-K*»vv, and have p~t;enc' 'Then he loT.t over Lily, who was receiving some courage, since she th;-rongh]y believed in Sir Maurice. h-t- ep a brave heart, mv Lily. N;" Des- perandum is the otLo of the C.uders. Christmas shall be bright and glorious, and t on Xew Year's Day such a wedding as shall make the wdic-le county talk." ? Another moment, and this cheering man of prnrnh- was gone. Whether he really believed as fHY in his I being able to restore the young heir to the boso'ii cf his family is doubtful, yet to seem t-> do so, he felt, were to add ce>s;dor,.biy to the chance.; r.f success. lIe spent day in making numerous Y2s.ig¡:tiQj!- among rhe :(,7""I'Jl, -e-poel -jy nmc'.g r..ns:e v. and in tl>- even; g, not a little to the surf.rof i ri to jw.ro :I, he we at to London v. ithcufc again vising his fiancee and Kr -pfu exits, v/hevo, as soon as business hours permitted i;. the morning, he paid a visit to Lord Bernard's lawyers. j Naturally, the old lawyer thought Sir | Maurice had conic- in reference to the mar- I annot nearti the boy 's absence 1 rom tm* V.V. :Uf. v u.uca surprised at the real motive of the visit Still more surprised was he at Sir Maurice's shrewd questions about Lord Bernard's past —questions which he felt bound to answer. Sir Maurice's reason for ashing them render- iii, the plain truth imperative. After an hour spent in inquiries and J > bngs down Sir Maurice took his leave, with many good wishes from the old man, who murmured to himself as he returned to his desk, If that fellow does not make a mark in the world I am no judge of capability." The wonder as to how he would deal with the information given him would be food for the astute lawyer's mind for some days to come. It certainly v.as 110 easy matter to handle. Slow and sure must be Sir Maurice's by- word. One false step, and the whole affair would be ruined. That the pslice should have anything to do with the matter he had no in- tention. He himself—on his own responsi- bility-mmt bring about the finding of little Rupert. That the child had been made away with he did not for a moment suspect. The ease as it had been represented to him did not warrant such a suspicion. I11 the evening, after his interview with the lawyer, he was to- be seen idling in his club, as if lie had no care in life beyond that of how to pass time agreeably. When he had almost given up hoping for him the man he was expecting put in an appearance. They talked together for some time pleasantly and airily. Then the late incomer said, laughing as he rose to go, So, in spite of marriage in tlia near future, you think you would like to know the lady? Why not? Oh, I see no reason. She is worth know- ing." Two days later Sir Maurice might have been seen knocking at a certain door in Wil- ton-place where dwelt a fashionable widow, whose beauty and charm were town talk but whose reputation was not quite unblemished, though she went into fashionable society. She would be delighted to make Sir Maurice Calder's acquaintance, she said. Would he come in about tea-time on the following day? He accepted by presenting himself, as it suited his purpose to do, and he was most cordially received. The lady was more than friendly. ) So you are going to marry my old friend I Lord Bernard's daughter? she said, as a be- ginning to conversation. Of course, you know the present Lady Bernard is not her mother." I "Naturally." he answered, laughing. I Since Lady Lily and I are to be married early in the New Year I have been made ac- quainted with a good deal of the family history." So? The announcement did not seem to please her. She pressed her somewhat thin lips closely together while a frown shrouded her I beautiful faCJe, and said, tartly: "If report speaks truly, the marriage and its festivities may have to be postponed." "Indeed: Why?" On account of the disappearance of the son and heir." Oh, he will be found before we are mar- ried. He has gone to the sea with his nurse." I "Indeed! That is the story that is being given out? and she laughed, a little hardly. Given out," repeated Sir Maurice. I wonder who is the gossip in the neighbour- hood who keeps you potted with inaccurate in- formation ?"' It is you, my friend, vho are imbibing the inaccurate. Perhaps you are not aware that I was once a persona grata at Castle Bernard, and have, therefore, a good many acquaint- ances in the neighbourhood. Now, of course, 11 it is all changed, and my lady reigns—but Time wiil, avenge.' Sir Maurice was—since his visit to the lawyer—quite aware (if all this, hence his vioit, to Mrs. Lane; but tha.t she herself would I have spoken so freely on the subject he did not expect. Even the motto of the Bernards she had not scrupled to use in connection with the past. However, the longest way round is often the shortest way there," thought this amateur detectivc; .so I10 drifted the talk away to pleasanier matters, and "soon found Mrs. Lane I' -as other men had told him she was-a moot animated and charming companion. So bent, too, was she on charming him that she ap- parently forgot all about Castle Bernard and I her .supposed wrongs, nor would she follow- I any lead to resume the subject. "Au revoir," she said, pleasantly, as they parted, and let me hear if the little boy has come back from the sea, and do not let your- self be so much taken up with marriage pre- parations as quite to forget Alice Lane. Ah, II me And a sigh followed him a<3 lie went downstairs. That evening, much to the surprise of the little mourning home party, lie walked unex- pectedly into the dining-room at Castle Ber- nard. Maurice, how good of you to come It was the first note of joy Lady Lily had I given voice to since the disappearance of the I quaint old vase. It was not, however, .solely to see lnts sweet, I pining love that Sir Maurice had returned to the Castle. A private interview with Lord Bernard was, he considered, imperative. "Fur- ther information which his Lordship could give would, lie hoped, throw some light on the bo37's whereabouts. the boy's whereabouts. I Not a little, therefore, to Lady Lily's dis- may the greater part of the evening was passed with Lord Bernard in his study—the door of wliich was locked, botli ladies being re- I vised admittance when they eagerly sought it. Sir Maurice stayed for the night at the Castle instead of returning to his own home, I which was only some short distance away. I Nor on the following day tvas he in any hurry to depart, but it was not with Lady Lily that he passed his time. The whole; morning was spent in wandering about the j village without any apparent aim, though there was a good deal of casual, pleasant talk svith various villagers when he met them, but ibotit little Rupert and the Castle trouble 'I' Little was said. Advice about the Christmas decorations was the leading topic, and where suitable devices, lamps, &c., might be bought. [ Yet these questions were most pertinent in 2onnection with the case in wliich he was in- I terested—only the simple-minded villagers I did not see the connection. 1 After a few words spoken with Lord Ber- nard, whom he met in the Castle grounds, Sir ) Maurice came in to luncheon with the ladies, j It was not a very festive meal, and soon Sir | Maurice rose, saying he must catch a train. Lady Lily looked disappointed. He saw tlia tears that came into her cye.3, and putting I- J.. 0. his hand on her shoulder said softly "You will trust me, my l ily." I To the death, Maurice." I "Then cheer up, little one. and get all the Christmas preparations into full swing. They must be more elaborate than ever this year, 11" since our wedding is to be among the cele- brations." AllotltRer míTlut and He was gone. leaving Elope and Fnith in the C'astle, Sii.ee everyr.no tiusted Sir Maurice Caider. lIe ran hastily to the station, and, arriving in town just as the winter's day was begin- ning to wane, he made for some rooms kept by an old servant of his mother's, where he | always put up on his occasional visit* to London. Ol his way there he bought various articles I ')f dress that were scarcely in his usual ward- robe, and, after a few words with the old landlady, who would, he knew, help rather thaii thwart him, lie sallied forth onceonore, looking so unlike the spruce, well-groomed Sir Maurice that even Lady Lily would not have known him. Into a motor-'bus he plunged, anffl was speedily conveyed to a neighbourhood cloiia to Tottenham Court-road -with which, in truth, he was but little acquainted. Only by gleanings he had gathered from Lord Bernard .and the villagers had he come to the conclusion that in this part of London he might be successful in finding little Rupert. An old furniture shop he was looking for. Neither the name cf the people nor the exact street had lie been able to ascertain, but the people who kept it were relations of a woman in the village with whom Mrs. Lane was in constant communication. For some time Sir Maurice wandered almost hopelessly about, afraid even that he woidd have to give up the quest, when sud- denly, in a window among some old bric-a- brac. he saw the VHsc-thc mascot of the Ber- ¡ nards—marked at the ignoble price of one shilling and sixparce. "That there is j net what I want,5 for a Christmas-box," he said, trying to slnoud his identity by srcaLí!1g like a low-born Lon- doner. But the grubby woman who stood at the door was not taken in that he was superior to his outward seeming the was cute enough to perceTvp. .H To get rid 0was, however, most desirable. She r?-jnjitvd the money and lie pocketed the vas-e. He was not in any hurry to depart. Might be an oLd chair or sumnHtt. his missus might like." She moved aside to let hi:n look about. A! A voice, and the heir of the i Bernards, untidy -and dirty, ran from a back room into the shop. Maurice, Maurice he cried out, the moment lie saw the would-be disgui-cd raan. There was no deceiving the keen instiriefc of I youth. Another second and he was on Sir Maurice's shoulder, and notw ithstandiiK-' the shrieks of the old shopworn an they were gone so quickly and suddenly that no one had time to 6top them, and a taxi took them to the old servant's lodgings. He would not shock the.susceptibilities cf his relations by taking little Rupert home in the sorry condition in which he had found him. Next morning a crisp Ciir;stma.s frost being in the air he walked through the vil- lage, head erect, alert and smiling, with the lost child for whom everyone grieved, upon his shoulder. The acclaim was deafening. To have little Rupert once more among them was, to the lionest-hearted villagers, a real Christmas joy. As Sir Maurice passed the post office he dropped a postcard into the letter-box. t It was addressed to Mrs. Lane, and was brief and to the point. I The little heir has come back from the sea. Time will Uk neantime, gardeners and labourers liad brought barrow-loads of laurel and holly, which had been gathered in a half-hearted sort of way for Christmas decorations. There was no half-lioartedness now, as they were thrown in profusion over the Castle steps, up which the radiant little heir was to be car- ried by his clever rescuer. Siicli.P. Christmas had never before been known at Castle Bernard, and all eyes, even those of the roughest men, were dimmed with tears as Sir Maurice placed the boy in his mother's arms. Guard him well, Lady Bernard, and if he gets lost again send for me," said Sir Maurice, laughing, while he grasped Lady Lily's outstretched hand. Meanwhile, Lord Bernard, brushing away emotion with an effort, addressed his work- people. My men, I tlnnk you all most cordially for the kind interest you have taken in me and n'y family. The return of my little son, by the help of Sir Maurice Caider, is bring- ing for all of us unexpected joy at this fes- tive season." Loud cheers for his Lordship. More for Master Rupert. The clamour was too deaf- ening for any words to be heard, ant] the shouting reached a climax when little Rupert, waking out of hi; sleep, slipped away from his mother and, holding on to his father by the coat, kissed his other hand to the assembled crowd for it was a crowd by this time, as nearly ail the village had assembled at the bottom of the hall. Rupert was indeed a child of promise, and nothing could have pleased the people better than to see him standing tlwrc by his father's fide. When at last Lord Bernard was allowed to proceed cheers still interrupted him at every sentence.. My good friends," he said. I invite you all, the whole village, to supper 011 Christmas Eve, in celebration of this happy event and thankfulness for the joyful Christmas God has given us. I aho iiivite you to be present at the festivities that will. 1 hope, at the New- Year celebrate the marriage of my dear daughter. Lady Lilv, with the gallant Sir Ma urice Caider." Three cheers for the rescuer of the young heir! shouted fl. voice in the distance, and let the worst happen to those who- Lord Bernard held up his hand and, know- ing their master well, silence -fell on the crowd. Let there be no talk of punishment—no recrimination," he said. "Leave that matter to a Higher Power, and remember the motto on the old vase, Time will avenge.' Let our Christmas thoughts dwell on Joy and Lovo and Prosperity; and, in all thankfulness, I wish that each one of you may be as happy as we-the family at the Castle-arc to-day." LTHE END.]