Читать книгу The Mystery Lady - Robert William Chambers - Страница 4

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When the boy’s money went into Orizava Oil they fed him “dividends” until his last penny was up.

He was proudly a part of Orizava Oil. On a salary he travelled on “confidential” missions for the corporation. All the glamour of a King’s Messenger was his, only he didn’t carry the Silver Greyhound: he was enough of a pup without other insignia.

And now the boy prepared to show the world,—and his incredulous sister. Already the inevitable astonishment and admiration of Wall Street entranced him in advance. He was a sad dog. He gazed into the brown eyes of Mrs. Wyvern and knew he was as sad a dog as ever had been whelped on earth.

Now it happened, when travelling on one of his “confidential” missions—which were devised to keep him out of the way because he bored Mrs. Wyvern——the boy found himself in Charleston, South Carolina, where Mr. Welper awaited him.

What Mr. Welper ever was about few people on earth knew; but he inhabited Charleston at that time, and the boy found him at the St. Charles Hotel and delivered a heavily sealed packet proudly. No doubt there were millions in securities in that envelope. It thrilled the boy to see Welper lock it in his satchel. It thrilled the boy still more to fish out a heavy automatic from the holster under his left arm-pit and lay it carelessly upon Mr. Welper’s bureau.

“They’d be up against hell itself if they tried to pull anything on you, wouldn’t they?” remarked Mr. Welper solemnly.

The boy attempted to look modest.

“Possibly,” suggested Welper, “while I’m busy here you might like to stroll about town—m—m, yes—or see a moving picture—” He handed the boy a local newspaper.

With the weary and patronising air of extremest sophistication the boy condescended to glance over the newspaper. He remarked that theatres bored him.

“There are some amusing auctions in the older part of town—if you are psychologically inclined,” suggested Mr. Welper. “Man is, m—m, the proper study of man.”

Psychology was the cant word of the hour.

“I’ll stroll around that way,” said the boy. In the back of his blond head his thoughts were fixed upon a movie.