Again he felt the grip of the hand upon his wrist, again he felt a presence which he could not explain--a presence which forbade him to sign away his liberty--his soul.
He thought, too, how immediately afterwards that guileless child Beatrice Stanmore had rushed into the room, and had told him that she had been impelled to come to him.
Suddenly a prayer came to his lips: "O God, help me! For Christ's sake, help me!"
It was strange, bewildering. He was not a praying man. He had not prayed for years, and yet the prayer, unbidden, almost unthought of, had come into his heart.
It was Tony Riggleton's voice, and he felt like a man wakened out of a trance.
"Good. You take me on, eh? We'll be pals, and you'll stay on here as my steward?"
"To-night! Well, I'm----But--but, all right. I'll drive you there in my car, and we'll make a night of it."
"No, thank you. Look here, Riggleton, I'm very much obliged to you, and I appreciate all you have said; but our paths must lie apart."
"Lie apart?" Tony's mind was a little confused. "You mean to say that you don't accept the allowance I'm willing to make you?"
"I mean that. I thank you very much, but I don't accept."
"No. Yes, I have, though. I've a few pounds which I saved before I thought I--I was----"
"Old Uncle Charlie's heir," concluded Tony as Dick hesitated. "But what about the estate?"
"The lawyer must settle all that. I'm sorry I'm intruding here. I'll go and pack my things right away. Some day I'll repay you for the money I've spent while I've been here."
"Look here," and Tony came to Dick's side, "don't you be a fool. You just take things sensibly. Pay me money! Money, be blowed! You just----"
"No, thank you. I'll go now if you don't mind."
He left the room as he spoke, and a few minutes later he had packed a small suit-case. He returned to the room where Tony still remained.
"To the station. If I make haste I shall catch the next train to London."
Riggleton looked at him in open-mouthed wonder. "Well, you _are_ a fool!" he gasped.
Dick rushed out of the house without a word to the servants. He felt as though he dared not speak to them. Something in his heart--something which he could not explain--was telling him to fly, and to fly quickly.