The pool of St Branok

I saw Gervaise glance at me. I started, but not with that apprehension which I had known before my confession to Gervaise. He had convinced me that I was in no way to blame and that it would be sensible for me to put the incident right out of my mind.

Uncle Peter went on: "He writes rarely. I don't think it has been as easy as he at first thought it would. But now it seems there has been a breakthrough."

He explained to Gervaise and Justin. "Benedict, my grandson ... an earlier family ... is a very go-ahead young man and had this notion of going out to Australia when he heard gold had been found there."

"That was a long time ago," said Aunt Amaryllis.

"Yes, it must be now. Benedict is not a letter-writing man and he certainly wouldn't communicate when times were hard. But I must say that he is a sticker. He went to Australia convinced that he would come back with a fortune and he is the sort who wouldn't want to return without one. That's why he is still out there."

"Well," said Matthew, "there hasn't been a fortune yet."

"He writes and says that there have been difficulties, but he thinks he's on a good strike now. There's a lot of hard work to be done, it seems, but his luck is changing. He says he has been scratching a living from the goldfields so far but he was always hopeful ... and now it looks as though those hopes are about to be realized."

"In what part of Australia is all this happening?" asked Justin.

"It's somewhere north of Melbourne."

"I remember what a lot of talk there was about finds there," said Justin. "It was very exciting. It must be more than ten years ago. There was a similar sort of thing in America. But that was somewhat earlier, I think. A man comes across it ... there's a lot of talk ... and the Rush is on. Someone did very well at a place called Golden Point, I believe. That was in Australia. He made a vast fortune. People left everything to go out there. They thought they were coming back millionaires."

"And did they?" I asked.

"Some of them did."

"Well, let's hope Benedict is successful," said Uncle Peter. "Somehow I don't think he will come home until he is. He's got that bulldog tenacity. Once he gets hold of an idea he won't let it go. He'll succeed or stay out there for the rest of his life .. . trying to."

"It is very interesting," said Gervaise. "I can understand how people get caught up in it."

"It's a gamble," said Uncle Peter. "So much would depend on luck. You would get some working day and night and finding nothing ... and then someone comes along and in a week or so he's stumbled on a fortune."

Aunt Amaryllis shivered. "I should hate that," she said.

Uncle Peter smiled at her tenderly.

"Don't worry, my dear. I have no intention of throwing up everything to go to the goldfields of Australia."

Everyone laughed and they began to talk of other things.

When we returned home Gervaise was thoughtful.

"Interesting about Benedict," he said. "He was the one you told me of."

I nodded.

"He seems rather a forceful character."

"Oh yes. I am sure he will find his gold."

"It seems to have taken him rather a long time."

"Yes, but he is bound to win in the end."

"And come back a millionaire."

I was wondering if he ever thought of me and of that adventure which we had shared together. It was significant that I could think of it now without that little shiver of fear. Gervaise had done that for me.

I did not notice how thoughtful Gervaise had become.

It was some days later when he broke the news to me. When we had last been at the house in the square he had left me with Aunt Amaryllis and had disappeared with Uncle Peter. When they rejoined us, Gervaise looked a little flushed—excited, I thought. Uncle Peter was his usual calm self.

I fancied Gervaise was impatient to leave.

When we finally did he was rather silent on the way home and at last in our bedroom I asked him if anything was wrong.

"Wrong?" he said. "No. About to be right. How would you like to go to Australia?"

"What?" I cried.

"We're going," he told me. "That is if you like the idea ... I shall have to go. I hope you will come too."

"Gervaise, whatever are you talking about?"

"I suppose," he said, "I had better begin at the beginning."

"It is usually advisable to."

"I'm in debt ... up to my ears."

Horror seized me. I felt limp with dismay and fear.

"But how? I've tried so hard ..."

"I know you have. I've lost a lot to Justin. That's not so important. It's the clubs ... I have to pay my debts. I'd never be received in any of them again if I didn't."

"Perhaps that would be just as well."

"You don't understand, Angelet. They are debts of honor. One can make one's tailor wait ... or the butcher, the baker and the candlestick-maker ... but one must pay one's gambling debts at the clubs."

"How much?"

"Too much to tell you."

"I had better know."

"I'm not sure ... except that it is too much for me to handle. That's the bad news. Now here is the good. My debts are going to be settled. I have had a word with your Uncle Peter."

"Why is he brought into this?"