The Chestermarke Instinct

"We hastened away to the town-to summon assistance. I don't think we had any very clear ideas, except to tell the police, and to see if we could get one of the fire brigade men to go down. I was in a dreadful state about the affair. I felt as though some blame attached to me. By the time we reached the bridge I felt like fainting. And Joseph suggested we should go in through his garden door to his workshop-he had some brandy there, he said-it would revive me. He took me in, up the garden, and into the workshop: I dropped down on a couch he had there, feeling very ill. He went to a side table, mixed something which looked-and tasted-like brandy and soda, brought it to me, and bade me drink it right off. I did so-and within I should say a minute, I knew nothing more.

"The next I knew I awoke in pitch darkness, feeling very ill. It was some little time before I could gather my wits together. Then I remembered what had happened. I felt about-I was lying on what appeared to be a couch or small bed, covered with rugs. But there was something strange-apart from the darkness and the silence. Then I discovered that I was chained!-chained round my waist, and that the chain had other chains attached to it. I felt along one of them, then along the other-they terminated in rings in a wall.

"I can't tell you what I felt until daylight came-I knew, however, that I was at Joseph Chestermarke's-perhaps at Gabriel's-mercy. I had discovered their secret-Hollis was out of the way-but what were they going to do with me? Oddly enough, though I had always had a secret dislike of Gabriel, and even some sort of fear of him, believing him to be a cruel and implacable man, it was Joseph that I now feared. It was he who had drugged and trapped me without a doubt. Why? Then I remembered something else. I had told Joseph-but not Gabriel-about my temporary custody of Lady Ellersdeane's jewels, and he knew where they were safely deposited at the bank-in a certain small safe in the strong room, of which he had a duplicate key.

"I found myself-when the light came-in a small room, or cell, in which was a bed, a table, a chair, a dressing-table, evidently a retreat for Joseph when he was working in his laboratory at night. But I soon saw that it was also a strong room. I could hear nothing-the silence was terrible. And-eventually-so was my hunger. I could rise-I could even pace about a little-but there was no food there-and no water.

"I don't know how long it was, nor when it was, that Joseph Chestermarke came. But when he came, he brought his true character with him. I could not have believed that any human being could be so callous, so brutal, so coldly indifferent to another's sufferings. I thought as I listened to him of all I had heard about that ancestor of his who had killed a man in cold blood in the old house at the bank-and I knew that Joseph Chestermarke would kill me with no more compunction, and no less, than he would show in crushing a beetle that crossed his path.

"His cruelty came out in his frankness. He told me plainly that he had me in his power. Nobody knew where I was-nobody could get to know. His uncle knew nothing of the Hollis affair-no one knew. No one would be told. His uncle, moreover, believed I had run away with convertible securities and Lady Ellersdeane's jewels-he, Joseph, would take care that he and everybody should continue to think so. And then he told me cynically that he had helped himself to the missing securities and to the jewels as well-the event of Saturday night, he said, had just given him the chance he wanted, and in a few days he would be out of this country and in another, where his great talent as a chemist and an inventor would be valued and put to grand use. But he was not going empty-handed, not he!-he was going with as much as ever he could rake together.

"And it was on that first occasion that he told me what he wanted of me. You know, Neale, that I am trustee for two or three families in this town. Joseph knew that I held certain securities-deposited in a private safe of mine at the bank-which could be converted into cash in, say, London, at an hour's notice. He had already helped himself to them, and had prepared a document which only needed my signature to enable him to deal with them. That signature would have put nearly a quarter of a million into his pocket.

"He used every endeavour to make me sign the paper which he brought. He said that if I would sign, he would leave an ample supply of the best food and drink within my reach, and that I should be released within thirty-six hours, by which time he would be out of England. When I steadily refused he had recourse to cruelty. Twice he beat me severely with a dog-whip; another time he assaulted me with hands and feet, like a madman. And then, when he found physical violence was no good, he told me he would slowly starve me to death. But he was doing that all along. The first three days I had nothing but a little soup and dry bread-the remaining part of the time, nothing but dry bread. And during the last two days, I knew that there was something in that bread which sent me off into long, continued periods of absolute unconsciousness. And-I was glad!

"That's all. You know the rest-better than I do. I don't know yet how that explosion came about. He had been in to me only a few minutes before it happened, badgering me again to sign that authority. And-I felt myself weakening. Flesh and blood were alike at their end of endurance. Then-it came! And as I say, that's all!-but there's one thing I wanted to ask you. Have those jewels been found?"

"Yes!" replied Neale. "They were found-all safe-in a suit-case in Joseph's house, along with a lot of other valuables-money, securities, and so on. He was evidently about to be off; in fact, the luggage was all ready, and so was a cab which he'd ordered, and in which he was presumably going to Ellersdeane."

"And another thing," said Horbury, turning from one to the other, "I heard this morning that you'd left the Bank, Neale. What are you going to do? What has happened?"

Betty looked at Neale warningly, stooped over the invalid, kissed him, rose and took Neale's unwounded arm.

"No more talk today, Uncle John!" she commanded. "Wait until tomorrow. Then-if you're very good-we shall perhaps tell you what is going to happen to-both of us!"

End of Project Gutenberg's The Chestermarke Instinct, by J. S. Fletcher

*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE CHESTERMARKE INSTINCT ***

***** This file should be named 27965-8.txt or 27965-8.zip ***** This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: http://www.gutenberg.org/2/7/9/6/27965/

Produced by Annie McGuire

Updated editions will replace the previous one-the old editions will be renamed.

Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without permission and without paying copyright royalties. Special rules, set forth in the General Terms of Use part of this license, apply to copying and distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works to protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm concept and trademark. Project Gutenberg is a registered trademark, and may not be used if you charge for the eBooks, unless you receive specific permission. If you do not charge anything for copies of this eBook, complying with the rules is very easy. You may use this eBook for nearly any purpose such as creation of derivative works, reports, performances and research. They may be modified and printed and given away-you may do practically ANYTHING with public domain eBooks. Redistribution is subject to the trademark license, especially commercial redistribution.

*** START: FULL LICENSE ***

THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU DISTRIBUTE OR USE THIS WORK