The relief given by this certificate was intense, to the proud, hard woman who had ruled at Thornton House with a rod of iron. Her contempt for the husband she had married was unbounded; but, at least, she was his lawful wife, and therefore policy bound her over to his cause. She knew quite well why Lewis must be kept in a good humour; for his father’s good name was at his mercy, or would be very shortly, when the handing-over of Maud’s trust-money could no longer be delayed. Mrs. Belassis, however, had small opinion of Lewis’s force of character, and attached no importance to this foolish quarrel. As the newly-acquainted brothers walked across the park towards Ladywell, Alfred said: ‘You shouldn’t have quarrelled with them for my sake, sir.’ ‘I wasn’t going to stand seeing you treated like that! You’re as much his son as I am!’ ‘Yes, sir, true enough; but, of course, things have changed; and he doesn’t like to be made to think of the past.’ ‘He needn’t have insulted you.’ ‘No, sir, he needn’t; but when a man’s temper is up, he doesn’t pick his words. We’d better have had it out more quiet-like, without the missis and the young ladies sitting by.’ ‘Well, one can’t think of everything, and truth’s truth. I know I should have quarrelled with him sooner or later; it doesn’t much matter how it happened.’ ‘But you’ll make it up again, surely, sir?’ ‘I wish you wouldn’t call me “sir.” I don’t know if I shall make it up. We’ve got a quarrel brewing on our own account. There’s a lot of money come to me by law, which isn’t mine by right—only by a piece of trickery. I’m not going to keep it. I’m going to give it back to the rightful owner, and my father will be furious—I know he will.’ ‘And when you’ve given up the money, and quarrelled with your father, how are you going to live, if I may be so bold as to ask?’ ‘I must earn my living somehow—sweep a crossing if need be. Well, no, I’ve got just enough to keep me above that; and I hope to get a decent berth of some kind, if such a thing’s to be had. I did want to get married’—here Lewis sighed—‘but, of course, that must wait till I’ve something to marry upon—eh, Alfred?’ He found it easier to talk to this friendly tradesman-relative of his affairs, than he would have done had he been of equal social standing. There was a straightforward honesty about the man which pleased him. Alfred seemed to ponder for a while. ‘You see, sir, it wants capital in these days to get a good berth—unless one’s a lad, and can work up from the bottom. Right must be done, but you’d have found the money very useful.’ ‘I know that well enough,’ sighed Lewis; ‘but I can’t rob my own cousin of what would have been hers, but for my father’s scheming. They all say it was that, and I believe it.’ ‘No, sir; I see you couldn’t. I don’t believe riches got like that ever prosper. Well, we’ll see what can be done. You’ve stood by me like a brother, and it would be a poor return if I couldn’t do the same by you.’