Mr. Stafford said dreamily that money would do anything.
Basil Stafford shot a swift look at Gheena as he answered that he had once wanted it so badly that he would have sold a limb to get it.
"I suppose," said Gheena, walking on, "that you won't keep to the drains after the winter here. You'll join something."
"You're not thinking of putting a white feather in my mince-pie for dinner, are you?" he said gravely. "There are other ways of helping besides wearing khaki, Miss Gheena, helping on war."
Gheena repeated "Helping on war" with sarcastic emphasis, and told Crabbit not to chase seagulls.
Crabbit leapt forth in swift pursuit of an elusive bird, a stately gull, which sailed off and then bobbed down into the icy sea, floating there gracefully, Crabbit immediately putting his paws into the water, trying to pretend that he had only come down to take the temperature. Then he pounced on something in the line of flotsam, and galloped back to Gheena to lay the offering at her feet.
It was a pocket-handkerchief of large size.
Gheena said "Crabbit, you beast!" turning away; but Stafford bent down and picked the sodden rag up; then dropped it again with a sharp exclamation and looked out to sea.
"We'll go back." Gheena walked towards the house. The kitchen chimney was absolutely pouring out smoke, heaving against the evening light.
"After all," said Stafford, "if there had been no war someone else would have been employed for the drainage, and I should never have come here."
Gheena, nose in air, considered the evening sky.
"And it doesn't much matter when I go away again, I suppose," he said. "There is the Professor on the cliffs. He must have sampled every rock in the place by now."
"And also Hook, coming back." Gheena stopped to look at the General's man. "He seems to do everything except look after his master, that man of the General's."
Hook and the Professor met upon the cliffs and spoke. Then the valet overtook them.
"Been right away to the point, sir," he said to Stafford. "Regular nest of caves and holes, this coast."
"There are some that one can see the water going into, but are quite hidden," said Gheena. "I believe there are entrances from the land. I know of a way down to one of those caves. My old nurse, who came from the village out there, said there were two or three others, but she never showed them to me."