Dick climbed the stair, after casting a quizzical look behind him, which meant that he wondered how long the colonel and Rob would last in a small room together. He unlocked the door of Rob's chambers more quickly than he opened it, for he had no notion of what might be caged up inside, and as soon as he had entered he stopped, amazed. All men of course are amazed once in their lives--when they can get a girl to look at them. This was Dick's second time.
It was the hour of the evening when another ten minutes can be stolen from the day by a readjustment of one's window curtains. Rob's blind, however, had given way in the cords, and instead of being pulled up was twisted into two triangles. Just sufficient light straggled through the window to let Dick see the man who was standing on the hearthrug looking sullenly at his boots. There was a smell of oil in the room.
Dowton!' Dick exclaimed; 'what masquerade is this?'
The other put up his elbow as if to ward off a blow, and then Dick opened the eyes of anger.
They stood looking at each other in silence.
'Just stand there, my fine fellow,' Dick said, 'until I light the gas. I must have a better look at you.'
The stranger turned longing eyes on the door as the light struck him.
'Not a single step in that direction,' said Dick, 'unless you want to go over the banisters.'
Abinger came closer to the man who was Sir Clement Dowton's double, and looked him over. He wore a white linen jacket, and an apron to match, and it would have been less easy to mistake him for a baronet aping the barber than it had been for the barber to ape the baronet.
'I follow the profession of hair-dressing,' replied Josephs, with his first show of spirit.
Had Dick not possessed an inscrutable face, Josephs would have known that his inquisitor was suffering from a sense of the ludicrous. Dick had just remembered that his father was downstairs.
'Well, Josephs, I shall have to hand you over to the police.'
'I think not,' said Josephs, in his gentlemanly voice.
'The way your father was deceived. The society papers would make a great deal of it, and he would not like that.'
Dick groaned, though the other did not hear him.
'You read the society journals, Josephs?'
'Well, how were you brought here?' Dick asked.