To his surprise, Mr. Tredgold senior was in an unusually affable mood.
He pushed his papers aside at once, and, motioning his visitor to a
chair, greeted him with much heartiness.
"Just the man I wanted to see," he said, cheerfully. "I want you to come
round to my place at eight o'clock to-night. I've just seen Stobell, and
he's coming too."
"I will if I can," said Mr. Chalk.
"You must come," said the other, seriously. "It's business."
"Business!" said Mr. Chalk. "I don't see--"
"You will to-night," said Mr. Tredgold, with a mysterious smile. "I've
sent Edward off to town on business, and we sha'n't be interrupted.
Goodbye. I'm busy."
He shook hands with his visitor and led him to the door; Chalk, after a
vain attempt to obtain particulars, walked slowly home.
Despite his curiosity it was nearly half-past eight when he arrived at
Mr. Tredgold's that evening, and was admitted by his host. The latter,
with a somewhat trite remark about the virtues of punctuality, led the
way upstairs and threw open the door of his study.
"Here he is," he announced.
A slender figure sitting bolt upright in a large grandfather-chair turned
at their entrance, and revealed to the astonished Mr.
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