Christopher Hibbault, Roadmaker Part 62

"That is a supposition I should be sorry to entertain, sir," he said deliberately.

"I am afraid you must entertain it," put in Christopher, suddenly, his resolution to escape urging him to curt methods.

The light eyes of the lawyer rested on him with something very like apprehension in them.

"In the case of there being no direct heir the money would go to the nearest of kin."

"We will pa.s.s that over," Mr. Aston said quietly. "I am the nearest relative Peter had, after Christopher, and I decline it at all costs."

"Unclaimed and unowned money would fall to the Crown, I suppose. It is impossible to imagine it."

"The Crown would see no difficulty in that, I expect," put in Christopher. "How could you stop the Thing going on, that's what I want to know?"

"You could give the money to Charities and shut down the works and leave thousands to starve."

Christopher moved impatiently.

"The money invested in each company could be divided amongst the shareholders, I suppose, or in the case of the Stormly Mines amongst the work-people."

"If you want to ruin them."

"Mr. Saunderson, I am not going to accept this fortune. I don't like the way it was made, I don't want it, I won't work for it."

"Why should you work for it, after all? You can go on with your own life and delegate your powers to another or others, and let all continue as it is. The income would be at your disposal to save or spend. You need never enter Princes Buildings if that is what troubles you. You can spend the money in philanthropy, or gamble it away at Monte Carlo, or leave it to acc.u.mulate for your heirs. If you'll do that I'll undertake to find suitable men to carry on the affairs."

Christopher's face flushed angrily, but he made an effort to control himself, however, and answered quietly.

"I cannot take money I've not earned, Mr. Saunderson."

Mr. Saunderson made a gesture of despair.

"All you have to do," went on Christopher, watching him closely, "is to act as if that clue had never fallen into your hands or as if when you followed it up you found I was dead. Do you mean to say Mr.

Masters did not provide for that contingency?"

"As I have told you before, Mr. Masters provided for no such contingency," snapped the lawyer; "he never entertained such a preposterous idea as your refusing."

"To conform to his will," concluded Christopher drily.

The three men were silent a while, each struggling to see some way out of the impa.s.se into which they had arrived.

"You say the various companies are entirely distinct from each other?"

queried Mr. Aston thoughtfully, more for the sake of starting a line of inquiry than because he saw any open door of escape.

"Entirely unconnected, but Mr. Masters, or his successor, holds the ends of the various threads, so to speak. Apart from him each affair has a mult.i.tude of masters and no head. If the money left in each company were divided as a bonus--a preposterous suggestion to my mind--they would each be free and would presumably find a head for themselves."

"Then you had better work out some such scheme, and once free of the source of the money we can deal with what's left at leisure. The Crown will make no difficulties over its share and we can set the London hospitals on their feet or establish a Home for Lost Cats." He got up and walked across the big room to the window, looking moodily into the street.

Mr. Saunderson looked genuinely pained and cast appealing glances at Mr. Aston, who only shook his head.

"It is a matter for Christopher to decide for himself, Mr. Saunderson.

I cannot and may not influence him either way."

"There is not the smallest doubt of his parentage," said the lawyer in a low voice, "one can hear his father in every sentence."

"It is unwise to remind him of it."

The other looked astonished. "Indeed, you surprise me. Yet he is really deeply indebted to his father for the success of his own invention."

"Still more unwise to insist on that. You must remember he had a mother as well as a father."

Mr. Saunderson opened his mouth to say something and closed it again.

Presently he opened a folded paper and, having perused it, laid it back in a drawer. Christopher rejoined them.

"Mr. Saunderson," he said frankly, "I fear I've spoken in an unseemly manner, and I beg your pardon. I can quite understand I must seem little short of a madman to you, but I've perhaps better reasons for my refusal than you think. Put it, if you will, that I feel too young, too inexperienced to deal with this fortune as Mr. Masters meant it to be dealt with, and on those grounds I ask you to devise some scheme for breaking it up without letting the workers suffer. I'll subscribe to any feasible plan you suggest. Will you undertake this for me?"

"It will take time." Mr. Saunderson regarded him watchfully, as he spoke, "a great deal of time."

"How long do you ask?"

"Two years."

"Then in two years' time, Mr. Saunderson, send me your scheme, and I'll be your debtor for life."

Mr. Saunderson smiled faintly.

But on that understanding they ultimately parted.

"My own belief is," said Mr. Aston when he was giving an account of the interview to Aymer, "that Mr. Saunderson means to do nothing at all and is only giving Christopher time. Also, though he persistently denies it, I believe he _has_ instructions behind him. We know Peter had an immense belief in Time and never hurried his schemes."

Aymer moved restlessly.

"And you share his belief?"

"I believe in the long run Christopher will do the thing he is meant to do and neither you nor I, old fellow, can say what that is. You have taught him to follow the highest Road he can, see, and I tell you again, as I have before, you must leave it at that."

CHAPTER x.x.xIII

Thus by tacit consent did the whole question of Peter Masters' Fortune and the Refusal slip into the background of the lives of those mostly concerned, and only for Christopher did that background colour all the present and alter the perspective of his outlook.

He told Aymer plainly that it was a bitter thought to him to be indebted to Peter Masters for even a share of the Patrimondi success.

"According to Saunderson he must have subsidised the Exhibition people," he said moodily.

"It was a very excellent advertis.e.m.e.nt."