Read Ebook: The Lindsays by Leys John K John Kirkwood

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Ebook has 1087 lines and 38355 words, and 22 pages

THE LINDSAYS.

TWO CONVERSATIONS.

Mr. Hatchett drove back to his office in a brown study. When he arrived there he sent for Mr. Beattie, who speedily made his appearance.

'Mr. Lindsay is not here, is he?' were the solicitor's first words.

'No, sir. He has been confined to the house with a bad cold for more than a week.'

'Just fetch me the draft of his uncle's will, if you please.'

Mr. Beattie left the room and came back after a few minutes, saying that he could not find it. This was not surprising, seeing that the document was at that moment reposing in a drawer of Mr. Beattie's writing-table, at his own lodgings.

'You can't find it!' exclaimed Mr. Hatchett, his face becoming more grave.

'No. It is not among the other drafts, nor in any of the drawers of Mr. Lindsay's table. One of them is locked, however, and he has the key. Very probably he has put it there for safety.'

'Likely enough. Did you see the draft before it was sent out?'

'I don't think I did,' said Mr. Beattie, after considering a moment. 'No; I am almost sure I did not. I was very busy at the time; but I remember telling Mr. Lindsay to lay the draft on my table, and I would revise it.'

'Did he do so?'

'I can't say; but I never saw it there, and so the thing escaped my memory.'

'You ought not to have allowed an important draft like that to leave the office, without either settling it yourself or sending it to counsel,' said Mr. Hatchett severely.

'You are quite right, sir. But I was kept in the Master's room till late in the afternoon on the day the will was drawn; and when I came back the draft had gone.'

'Then you should have taken care to go over it the next morning, when it came back.'

'I don't forget the letter; but it does not release us from all responsibility,' interrupted the solicitor.

'Has anything happened?' asked the other.

'Well, I should not be surprised if something does happen. It seems that the old gentleman altered an intention he had of leaving an enormous sum of money to the Scotch Presbyterians, and left them only five thousand pounds instead.'

'Rather a sensible thing to do, I should say,' observed Mr. Beattie, with a smile.

'Yes; but the odd thing is that one of the Presbyterian parsons, a Scotchman called Mackenzie, I think, says that he saw the draft' , 'and that in it the bequest was five hundred thousand pounds.'

'Then the old gentleman changed his mind later in the day, I suppose,' put in the clerk.

'And stranger still,' pursued the solicitor, 'this man says that he was present when the will was signed, that young Lindsay read it aloud before it was signed, and that he read the bequest "five hundred thousand."'

'Really! That is very odd!'

'Very odd indeed.'

'Was anyone else present?'

'It is impossible that Lindsay should have committed a fraud. I won't believe it of him for a moment!' exclaimed the managing clerk warmly.

'This nephew's evidence is not disinterested, however,' pursued Mr. Hatchett. 'He shares the residue with young Lindsay; and it must be a very large sum, about half a million, I suppose.'

'Had the minister any interest in it, one way or the other?' asked Beattie.

'No; of course not. His name was in the will, though, as secretary to the trust, or something. Here it is,' he added, unfolding the will as he spoke--'at such a remuneration as the trustees in their discretion may decide.'

'No; but of course there is a vast difference between a few hundreds a year and a quarter of a million. And it seems odd that there should be all these elaborate directions about a secretary, and so on, if the bequest was meant to be only five thousand pounds.'

'Perhaps the direction to change the amount came after the will was drawn, and young Lindsay allowed all the rest of it to remain,' suggested Beattie. 'I should think it quite possible,' continued he, 'that the old man was under this minister's influence, afraid of him, in fact, and that he privately told his nephew to make the sum only five thousand, but to read the will as if it were five hundred thousand, to save himself from having a scene with the minister.'

'Rather a far-fetched explanation,' said Mr. Hatchett, with a smile. 'Besides, the other nephew, Semple, says that his cousin read "five thousand."'

'One of the two is clearly mistaken,' said Beattie.

'Or lying,' said the lawyer. 'Of course the case on the other side is that the two nephews made up a plan to get this money for themselves. Young Lindsay was to get his uncle to intrust the drawing of the will to him, alter the draft by striking out the word "hundred," and deceive the old gentleman by reading the will as if it had been left in, while the other cousin swears that he read it quite correctly. The minister means mischief; I could see that. Well; we can't say anything about it till Lindsay is convalescent. When do you think I could see him?'

'I expect he will be here to-morrow morning. There was a note from him a day or two ago to that effect.'

'Very good; tell me as soon as he comes.'

And here the conversation ended.

As soon as Mr. Beattie was released from the office that evening he went to Alec's rooms. The invalid was sitting alone, with a large fire to keep him company.

'Well, Lindsay, I congratulate you.'

'On being indoors this dismal weather? I meant to have gone to my uncle's funeral to-day, but the doctor bullied me into giving up the idea.'

'Why didn't you tell me you were going to come in for half your uncle's money?'

'Because I have done nothing of the kind.'

'But you have; and I congratulate you with all my heart.'

'Nonsense. I get five thousand pounds. So does Semple. The bulk of it goes to the Free Church.'

'That was your uncle's original idea, I know; I took his instructions myself to that effect. But you must know very well that he changed his mind, and told you to make his legacy to the Free Kirk five thousand--and quite enough too.'

'Stop a minute, man, and let me speak. I have just seen Mr. Hatchett. He read the will to them all after the funeral, and it seems there was a fine row. As it stands, the legacy to the Kirk is only five thousand pounds.'

'But I tell you I saw it. And you can see it for yourself, as soon as you are well enough to drive down to the office. Your uncle must have changed his mind, and told you to make it five thousand, and your illness has made you forget it--though I warn you, old man, you had better not say you had forgotten such a thing as that. No one would believe you.'

'There's no forgetting in the matter,' cried Alec, striking the elbow of his chair with his fist. 'My uncle never changed his mind. And what I put in the will was five hundred thousand pounds to trustees for the Free Church.'

'Look here, Lindsay, I'll forget what you have said just now. You did not say it.'

'What on earth do you mean?'

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