The
big man swung halfway around so that he could see her the plainer in the subdued light. "Maybe you ain't Miss Lane —Jekyll is a name we have an interest in hereabouts.
When did the doctor decide to send you here, miss? Nice neat plan—goes into
hiding when his friend dies, waits a goodish spell till he thinks it's all
forgot, and then makes a play-acting business of it! Where did you really come
from, Miss Whateveryernamebe?"
Hester looked from that big rough face to that
of the solicitor and back again. She had no idea what was going on—her head
felt light. "Sir, I have never used any name save that of Lane. To my
knowledge that was my father's and the one I had a right to. It is true that my
mother was Amy Durrant. She died very young and I have no true memory of her.
My father, as I have said, lived a very retired life, something he also asked
of me.
"Upon his death I discovered that we had
lived entirely on the payments of an annuity that he had purchased the year my
mother died. He left nothing but the house and his library, which I was forced
to sell in order to pay a few remaining debts—"
"What about the doctor? No money from
him, eh? Left his blood kin to go hungry? That's not the way I've heard that he
did things. When did he meet you—and where? Went to Canada , eh? So that's why we couldn't find him to
have a few words. And you knew it!" He almost roared that at Utterson.
"Set it all up—advertisement in the paper . . . and young lady, poor
orphan, come to get her rights and—"
Utterson pushed back a little from the desk,
though he still kept his hand on the papers. "You forget yourself,
Inspector," he said in an icy voice. "I am by profession an officer
of the court, or did you not know that? There is nothing illegal about this
matter. As for Miss Lane —Miss Jekyll here—I knew nothing of her existence until this
afternoon."
"Ha!" The man Utterson addressed as
"Inspector" made that one exclamation forceful enough to deny
everything he had heard. "Where's the doctor?"
"I don't know any doctor," she said,
fighting to keep her voice steady. "I came to England three months ago with Major Jeffrey Ames's
daughter. She is only twelve and her mother died last year. The major could not
arrange leave to bring her to her grandmother's—she is Lady Ames—so he hired me
as her governess."
"And you are with Miss Ames now?"
That was Utterson.
"I was there until last week, sir. But
Lady Ames desired a governess with more experience of London life. She was able
to find one and—"
'Turned you off clip and clean then, eh?"
Newcomen nodded. "And the doctor, he had nothing to do with all this
coming and going?"
"Sir, I do not know any doctor. As for my
living, I have this very day been able to find a very pleasing and promising
position with the magazine The British Lady. You may inquire of Miss Scrimshaw,
the editor. I had written some things in
Canada and she was pleased to publish them a
year or so ago. Now, I must go." Somehow Hester found she was able to
stand up and put out her hand for the mistreated book and the documents it had
concealed. "Miss Scrimshaw has already given me an assignment to work
on."
"My dear young
lady." There was more warmth in Utter-son's voice than she had
heard previously. "There is good reason to believe that you may be related
to Dr. Jekyll," he said, still holding the papers. "Unfortunately,
the doctor disappeared some months ago under circumstances that are difficult to
explain. Should our future discoveries prove to be of an unpleasant
kind"—he hesitated a moment—"Doctor Jekyll would have wanted his
estate to go to his kin."
big man swung halfway around so that he could see her the plainer in the subdued light. "Maybe you ain't Miss Lane —Jekyll is a name we have an interest in hereabouts.
When did the doctor decide to send you here, miss? Nice neat plan—goes into
hiding when his friend dies, waits a goodish spell till he thinks it's all
forgot, and then makes a play-acting business of it! Where did you really come
from, Miss Whateveryernamebe?"
Hester looked from that big rough face to that
of the solicitor and back again. She had no idea what was going on—her head
felt light. "Sir, I have never used any name save that of Lane. To my
knowledge that was my father's and the one I had a right to. It is true that my
mother was Amy Durrant. She died very young and I have no true memory of her.
My father, as I have said, lived a very retired life, something he also asked
of me.
"Upon his death I discovered that we had
lived entirely on the payments of an annuity that he had purchased the year my
mother died. He left nothing but the house and his library, which I was forced
to sell in order to pay a few remaining debts—"
"What about the doctor? No money from
him, eh? Left his blood kin to go hungry? That's not the way I've heard that he
did things. When did he meet you—and where? Went to Canada , eh? So that's why we couldn't find him to
have a few words. And you knew it!" He almost roared that at Utterson.
"Set it all up—advertisement in the paper . . . and young lady, poor
orphan, come to get her rights and—"
Utterson pushed back a little from the desk,
though he still kept his hand on the papers. "You forget yourself,
Inspector," he said in an icy voice. "I am by profession an officer
of the court, or did you not know that? There is nothing illegal about this
matter. As for Miss Lane —Miss Jekyll here—I knew nothing of her existence until this
afternoon."
"Ha!" The man Utterson addressed as
"Inspector" made that one exclamation forceful enough to deny
everything he had heard. "Where's the doctor?"
"I don't know any doctor," she said,
fighting to keep her voice steady. "I came to England three months ago with Major Jeffrey Ames's
daughter. She is only twelve and her mother died last year. The major could not
arrange leave to bring her to her grandmother's—she is Lady Ames—so he hired me
as her governess."
"And you are with Miss Ames now?"
That was Utterson.
"I was there until last week, sir. But
Lady Ames desired a governess with more experience of London life. She was able
to find one and—"
'Turned you off clip and clean then, eh?"
Newcomen nodded. "And the doctor, he had nothing to do with all this
coming and going?"
"Sir, I do not know any doctor. As for my
living, I have this very day been able to find a very pleasing and promising
position with the magazine The British Lady. You may inquire of Miss Scrimshaw,
the editor. I had written some things in
Canada and she was pleased to publish them a
year or so ago. Now, I must go." Somehow Hester found she was able to
stand up and put out her hand for the mistreated book and the documents it had
concealed. "Miss Scrimshaw has already given me an assignment to work
on."
"My dear young
lady." There was more warmth in Utter-son's voice than she had
heard previously. "There is good reason to believe that you may be related
to Dr. Jekyll," he said, still holding the papers. "Unfortunately,
the doctor disappeared some months ago under circumstances that are difficult to
explain. Should our future discoveries prove to be of an unpleasant
kind"—he hesitated a moment—"Doctor Jekyll would have wanted his
estate to go to his kin."
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