"Do you tell me that he desires to marry her now?"
"I understand from Charlotte--the name of my intended; I cannot speak of her as Miss Fox-Cordery, there is something hateful in the name--that it is his ardent wish, and that he has set his heart upon it. That may be the reason for his taking the house by the river and for his wish to make Mrs. Grantham his guest there. Part of a plan--and his plans are generally well laid. He hoped to bring his suit to a happy ending, for him, before the termination of her visit."
"But Robert Grantham lives!" exclaimed Rathbeal.
"He believes him to be dead, remember; you yourself told me so."
"Yes, yes; I was forgetting for the moment. I see now why he came to me; the motive of all his actions is clear. But this must not be allowed to go on any longer. In justice to her, in justice to Robert, the truth must no longer be withheld."
"My own opinion: there has been but little time lost; it is only yesterday that you and I first met. My idea is, to bring matters to a conclusion this very night. I shall go to meet my intended, and hear what she has to say. I am not sure whether Mrs. Grantham will be with her. If she is not, I will not leave without an interview in which she shall learn the solemn truth. It will be a difficult task to prepare her for it, but it is a duty that must be performed. Meanwhile you must prepare Robert Grantham for the wonderful happiness in store for him. Do you think it advisable that we shall go down together?"
"It will be best; and on our way we can determine upon our course of action. I imagine that we shall have to keep in the background until we receive an intimation from you to appear; but we can talk of all that by-and-by. I have paved the way with Robert already, and he is now impatiently awaiting me. Ah-ha! Mr. Fox-Cordery, when you weave a web, nothing ever escapes from it! A stronger hand than yours has woven for you a web, and scattered yours to the four winds of heaven. I have tortured him already with letters, trusting to Fate to aid me, and he stands, unmasked, defeated, disgraced for evermore."
This outburst was enigmatical to John Dixon, but time was too valuable for him to ask for an explanation. There was much to do, and every minute of the day would be occupied. He made an appointment to meet Rathbeal and Grantham in the evening, and they parted to go upon their separate tasks.