L. T. Meade

“ If he forces Jack to pay now, all his prospects are ruined. Oh, what a terrible power my cousin holds over him! If I could only get £20,000, I should be a free girl!”
“Then there is nothing whatever for it,” I said, “but to find the will. When the will is found, and it is proved that you are the heiress, you can defy your cousin, for you can pay Kelvin's debts yourself.”
“Ah, yes, yes; and now I am coming to the real point of this interview. Please listen with all your might. Do you remember my telling you about the curious bronze disc which my uncle had discovered?” ”

“ You know when you sprinkle sand on a metal disc, and draw a violin bow down the edge of the disc, the sand forms itself into beautiful and symmetrical patterns, and when you place your fingers on the edge at places called Nodes, the pattern is of constant form. Well, here are the three things—Fingers, Bow, Sand.”
“But whatever have they to do with treasure in a Roman villa?” I asked. ”

“ I said. “You are a man of large property, and if you mean her to inherit it, she must not be a prey to fortune-hunters.”
“Oh, Kelvin is nothing of that sort,” he said, somewhat impatiently. “If anything, he is too unworldly; he loves my girl devotedly, and she fairly worships the ground he walks on. I am not surprised, and when you know him better, Cato, you will yourself yield to his many fascinations.”
That evening Miss Seafield asked me if her uncle had said anything with regard to Kelvin. ”

“ Now, I have studied the laws of treasure-trove and discovered that the finder must hand over the treasure to the Crown, who pays him or her its intrinsic value. If this disc really contains the key to hidden treasure, and we can discover its meaning and get at the treasure, I may be able to pay the debt which Jack Kelvin owes my cousin, and so save him and release myself. ”

“ A man who gets drunk once a month, and takes nothing in the interval, will live longer than a man who is never the worse for liquor but is constantly tippling; but pray remember, the man who does neither will outlive them both.”
“I have no doubt that is so,” he answered, “but I could not exist without wine, and I never drink to excess. I am much obliged to you for your opinion, Dr. Cato. You can assure me there is no present cause for alarm?”
“None, if you will be moderate,” was my reply.
“I will tell Primrose what you say; she will be relieved, poor girl. ”

“ The bronze was lying on a table near, and he had evidently fainted while struggling to possess himself of its secret. I locked the bronze disc up in one of the cupboards in the study, and took immediate steps to bring my uncle here. I am most anxious about him.”
“He certainly looks extremely ill,” I replied, “but I trust the treatment and the great quiet of the place will go far to restore him. Has he shown any other eccentricities, Miss Seafield?”
She hesitated, then said, slowly, “There is one other craze which has manifested itself to an extraordinary degree. ”

“ The son in question, James Royal, is a very bad man, and has led a most reckless and extravagant life. My uncle has paid his debts many times and given him very large sums of money, but within the last five years he has absolutely refused to allow him to come near Court Royal, and has assured me that he will not leave him a farthing. James Royal, who used to terrify me when I was a little child by coming to the house and making fearful disturbances, has taken his father at his word, and we neither of us now know where he is or whether he is in existence at all. ”

“ Cato,” she said, “that he is suffering from what almost amounts to mania; but, nevertheless, I who have known him all my life am certain that such is the case.”
“What do you mean?” I asked.
“Well, in the first place, he will not consult his family physician. He has absolutely refused to see Dr. Winstanley for the last two years, and it is since then that the curious phase of nervous disorder to which I allude has become so manifest. I cannot tell you how relieved I was when he declared his intention of becoming a member of the Sanctuary Club, and of putting himself under your treatment.” ”

“ Cato,” he wrote: “I am an old man, and one never knows what may happen. I have heard a great deal of your Club from people who have derived benefit from your peculiar mode of treatment, and it is quite possible that in the future the institution which you have been good enough to inaugurate may be of use to my niece Primrose. In the present case it will undoubtedly be of service to me. ”

“ He is very clever, more than clever; his writings are beautiful. He will make his mark in the world of letters if he goes on, but he has had a sad life, and has had much trouble. Dr. Cato, I don't mind telling you, he put himself some years ago into the power of my cousin, James Royal. ”

“ You may think it rather soon after my father's death, but the wedding will be a very quiet one, and there are reasons that make it inexpedient to allow any further delay. This day week, I hope to see myself united to as good a girl as ever breathed. You guess, of course, that I allude to my cousin, Primrose Seafield. ”

“ It is not every girl who has the chance of being mistress of a fine property like this. The fact is, the whole thing is a most lucky escape for her. Had my father made a will, she would have inherited Court Royal and thrown herself away upon a fellow in town, of the name of Kelvin, an imbecile sort of chap. He poses as a maker of poetry, and writes a lot of silly stuff; you must know the sort of fellow for yourself. Primrose thought herself in love with him, and would have married him, had I not stepped in to interfere. Our wedding-bells will ring in a week ”

“ I said.
“Have you met my cousin?” she asked. “He left by the eight o'clock train for London—meaning to go straight out to Hampstead.”
“Then in that case he will soon be back,” I answered; “and we have not a moment to lose. Dr. Chetwynd has discovered the key to the secret of the disc. Will you come with us at once to the old Roman villa?”
“We ought to take tools with us,” said Chetwynd.
“I noticed some there yesterday,” I replied, “left behind doubtless by the workmen. Come, Miss Seafield.”
On our way to the ruins I told the excited girl something of what Chetwynd had explained to me. ”

“ Granted that your father did suffer from mania, it behoves you to be more careful than ordinary men, and a quiet, open-air life is what will suit you best. Avoid all excitement, and, what is far more important, excess of every kind. ”

“ All I know is that I get this as a constant figure”—here he showed me a sheet of paper with a strange pattern drawn on it—“and if we find one of the mosaics corresponding to this,” he continued, “I should say there might be a chance for us.” ”