Page 341 - A Jacobite Exile

with them, and stayed for three or four days, and they were glad to see that
Mrs. Dormay seemed to be shaking off the weight of her trouble, and was

looking more like her old self.

They then rode to Lancaster, and returned to London by coach. They
crossed to Gottenburg by the first vessel that was sailing, and Sir
Marmaduke was delighted to hear the success of their mission, and that he

was at liberty to return at once, as master of Lynnwood.

"Luck favoured you somewhat, Charlie, in throwing that vagabond in your
way, but for all else we have to thank you both, for the manner in which
you have carried the affair out, and captured your fox. As for John Dormay,

'tis the best thing that could have happened. I have often thought it over,
while you have been away, and have said to myself that the best settlement

of the business would be that you, Harry, when you obtained proofs, should
go down, confront him publicly, and charge him with his treachery, force
him to draw, and then run him through the body. Charlie would, of course,

have been the proper person, in my absence, so to settle the matter, but he
could not well have killed my cousin's husband, and it would have added to

the scandal.

"However, the way it has turned out is better altogether. It will be only a

nine days' wonder. The man has been cut by all the gentry, and when it is
known that he shot himself to escape arrest, many will say that it was a fit

ending, and will trouble themselves no more concerning him.

"You are coming back with me, I hope, Charlie. I have seen but little of you

for the last four years, and if you are, as you say, going with the Duke of
Marlborough to the war in the spring, I don't want to lose sight of you again

till then. You can surely resign your commission here without going back
to the army, especially as you have leave of absence until the end of
March."

Charlie hesitated.