Doubtless by this time he was safe and snug in the Albany:
what did my fate matter to him? Never mind; this should be the end
between him and me as well; it was the end of everything, this dark
night's work! I would go and tell him so. I would jump into a cab
and drive there and then to his accursed rooms. But first I must
escape from the trap in which he had been so ready to leave me. And
on the very steps I drew back in despair. They were searching the
shrubberies between the drive and the road; a policeman's lantern
kept flashing in and out among the laurels, while a young man in
evening-clothes directed him from the gravel sweep. It was this
young man whom I must dodge, but at my first step in the gravel he
wheeled round, and it was Raffles himself.
"Hulloa!" he cried. "So you've come up to join the dance as well!
Had a look inside, have you? You'll be better employed in helping
to draw the cover in front here. It's all right, officer - only
another gentleman from the Empress Rooms."
And we made a brave show of assisting in the futile search, until
the arrival of more police, and a broad hint from an irritable
sergeant, gave us an excellent excuse for going off arm-in-arm.
Pages:
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45