The House of Arden | Page 7

like that," he added sharply. "You're Lord Arden right
enough."

"I--I can't be," gasped Edred.
"Auntie said Lord Arden was a relation of ours--a sort of
great-uncle--cousin."
"That's it, missy," the old man nodded. "Lord Arden--chrissen name
James--'e was first cousin to Mr. George as was your grandf'er. His son
was Mr. Edred, as is your father. The late lord not 'avin' any sons--nor
daughters neither for the matter of that--the title comes to your branch
of the family. I've heard Snigsworthy, the lawyer's apprentice from
Lewis, tell it over fifty times this last three weeks. You're Lord Arden, I
tell you."
"If I am," said Edred, "I shall say the spell and find the treasure."
"You'll have to be quick about it," said Elfrida. "You'll be over ten the
day after to-morrow."
"So I shall," said Edred.
"When you're Lord Arden," said the old man very seriously,--"I mean,
when you grow up to enjoy the title--as, please God, you may--you
remember the poor and needy, young master--that's what you do."
"If I find the treasure I will," said Edred.
"You do it whether or no," said the old man. "I must be getting along
home. You'd like to play about a bit, eh? Well, bring me the keys when
you've done. I can trust you not to hurt your own place, that's been in
the family all these hundreds of years."
"I should think you could!" said Edred proudly. "Goodbye, and thank
you."
"Goodbye, my lord," said the old man, and went.
"I say," said Edred, with the big bunch of keys in his hand,--"if I am
Lord Arden!"

"You are! you are!" said Elfrida. "I am perfectly certain you are. And I
suppose I'm Lady Arden. How perfectly ripping! We can shut up those
lodging-children now, anyhow. What's up?"
Edred was frowning and pulling the velvet covering of moss off the big
stone on which he had absently sat down.
"'AYE,' HE SAID, 'YOU'RE AN ARDEN, FOR SURE.'"
"Do you think it's burglarish," he said slowly, "to go into your own
house without leave?"
"Not if it is your own house. Of course not," said Elfrida.
"But suppose it isn't? They might put you in prison for it."
"You could tell the policeman you thought it was yours. I say, Edred,
let's!"
"It's not vulgar curiosity, like auntie says; it's the spell I want," said the
boy.
"As if I didn't know that," said the girl contemptuously. "But where's
the house?"
She might well ask, for there was no house to be seen--only the great
grey walls of the castle, with their fine fringe of flowers and grass
showing feathery against the pale blue of the June sky. Here and there,
though, there were grey wooden doors set in the grey of the stone.
"It must be one of those," Edred said. "We'll try all the keys and all the
doors till we find it."
So they tried all the keys and all the doors. One door led to a loft where
apples were stored. Another to a cellar, where brooms and spades and
picks leaned against the damp wall, and there were baskets and piles of
sacks. A third opened into a tower that seemed to be used as a
pigeon-cote. It was the very last door they tried that led into the long
garden between two high walls, where already the weeds had grown

high among the forget-me-nots and pansies. And at the end of this
garden was a narrow house with a red roof, wedged tightly in between
two high grey walls that belonged to the castle.
All the blinds were down; the garden was chill and quiet, and smelt of
damp earth and dead leaves.
"Oh, Edred, do you think we ought?" Elfrida said, shivering.
"Yes, I do," said Edred; "and you're not being good, whatever you may
think. You're only being frightened."
Elfrida naturally replied, "I'm not. Come on."
But it was very slowly, and with a feeling of being on tiptoe and
holding their breaths, that they went up to those blinded windows that
looked like sightless eyes.
The front door was locked, and none of the keys would fit it.
"I don't care," said Edred. "If I am Lord Arden I've got a right to get in,
and if I'm not I don't care about anything, so here goes."
Elfrida almost screamed, half with horror and half with admiration of
his daring, when he climbed up to a little window by means of an
elder-tree that grew close to it, tried to open the window, and when he
found it fast deliberately pushed his elbow through the glass.
"Thus," he said rather unsteadily, "the heir of Arden Castle re-enters his
estates."
He got the window open and disappeared through it. Elfrida stood
clasping and