At all events she had found the link--the pale gold oval with the
champagne bottle enamelled upon it. It was a strange device, she
thought, for a sleeve-link; certainly it was the first of the kind she
had seen. And she fancied that the other portions of the links would
bear the same design; but in this she was wrong. What she had found
proved to her that the assassin had been a gentleman; for no poor
creature could have afforded to wear such jewellery. But how to make
use of the discovery? How was she to find out to whom the link had
belonged, especially now that so many years had passed? The owner might
be dead; he might be out of England! There remained the one expedient
of asking Mrs. Jenner if she could remember anyone who had worn such
links. So this Ruth made up her mind to do as soon as she could see
Geoffrey. He might question the unfortunate woman; and through a series
of leading questions the truth might be revealed. Meanwhile, feeling
that nothing else was to be done for the moment, she went to see Mrs.
Garvey. With her powers, she might reveal strange things about the
owner of that piece of gold.
The girl had intended to take the brown horse with her; but on going
to the drawer in which she had put it she found it empty. Then she
remembered that her little nieces had received permission to turn over
her silks and laces she questioned them about the missing toy, and
Ethel, the eldest, frankly confessed that they had taken it for their
brother George.
"I hope you do not mind, Aunt Ruth," the child said, pleadingly; "you
said we could take what we liked that wet day, so long as we put the
things tidy. We thought George might like the horse, so we gave it to
him."
Strange, thought Ruth, that the toy should have passed into the very
hands for which it was intended; but she shuddered at the thought of
the lad playing with a thing of such ghastly associations! It was her
own fault; she had forgotten that it was in that drawer when she had
told the children that they might play with her chiffons.
"But I told you, Ethel, to put them back," she said. "Why did you not
replace the toy?"
Ethel drew a piteous lip and tears came into her eyes. "Oh, don't be
cross, Aunt Ruth, and don't tell mother! You know how angry she will
be. We put everything back but the horse, and George would not give it
up to us."
"Why could you not take it from him?" her aunt asked, impatiently.
"Because he has hidden it away," sobbed the little girl. "He won't say
where it is."
So, after pacifying the child, Ruth went off in search of George. She
came upon that young gentleman on the terrace playing with a cart.
Naturally, she looked for the horse which should have been drawing the
vehicle, but no horse was to be seen. "Where is your gee-gee?" coaxed
Aunt Ruth.
"Gone to grass," lisped George, who was precocious beyond telling.
"You bring him back from grass, Georgie, and give him to Aunt Ruth."