Man-woman relationships -- Fiction; Mystery fiction; Young men -- Fiction
It seemed to Ross that that was the only possible way for any man to
regard this preposterous and lovely creature, not critically, but
simply with indulgence.
Taking up his cap and overcoat, Eddy departed, whistling as he went
down the stairs. Miss Solway waited, scowling, until he had gone; then
she turned to Ross.
“_Who are you?”_ she demanded.
He was greatly taken aback. He had not yet had time to collect his
thoughts; nothing much remained in his mind except the decision of the
night before that this morning he was going to the police with an
account of what he had seen. And, stronger and clearer than anything
else, was his desire and resolve to get away from here.
“Oh, tell me!” she entreated.
Ross reflected well before answering. Eddy suspected him of
something—Heaven knew what. Perhaps this girl did, too. He imagined
that they were both a little afraid of him. And, if he held his
tongue, and didn’t let them know how casual and unpremeditated all his
actions had been, he might keep them in wholesome doubt about him, and
so get away.
“My name’s Moss,” he replied, as if surprised. “I came to get a job.”
“No!” she said. “You got my note. But how could you? Who _can_ you be?
Nanna said—but I don’t believe it! I knew—as soon as I saw you—I felt
sure you’d come to help me. Oh, tell me! My cousin James sent you,
didn’t he?”
“James Ross?” asked Ross, slowly.
“Yes!” she answered, eagerly. “My cousin James. He did! I know it!
Mother always told me to go to him if I needed help. Of course, I know
he must be old now. I was afraid—so terribly afraid that he’d left the
ship, or that I’d forgotten the name of it. But I was right, after
all. I thought mother had said he was purser on the Farragut.”
“What!” cried Ross.
He began to understand now. Years and years ago—the dimmest memory—he
had had a cousin James who was purser on one of the Porto Rico boats.
He could vaguely remember his coming to their house in Mayaguez; a
gloomy man with a black beard; son of his father’s elder brother
William. It must have been on the old Farragut, scrapped nearly twenty
years ago.
And that cousin James had vanished, too, long ago. William Ross had
had three children, and outlived them all. Ross could remember his
grandfather telling him that.
“All gone,” the old man had said; “both my sons and their sons. No
doubt the Almighty has some reason for sparing _you_; but it’s beyond
me.”
“_Your_ Cousin James?” said Ross, staring at her—because that had been
_his_ Cousin James.
“Yes! Yes! Yes!” she answered, impatiently. “I told you. Now tell me
how—”
But Ross wanted to understand.
“What was your father’s name?” he demanded.
“Luis Delmano,” she replied. “But what does that matter? I only have a
minute—”
“Then why do you call yourself Solway if your name is—”
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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