Angel of Terror

and breathlessly and a little shamefacedly, she told him what had happened."Of course it was an accident," she insisted, "in fact, Mr. and Miss Briggerland were al

and she regretted that she had promised to place a room at the disposal of the aged Mr. Jaggs. If he was awake all night as she presumed he would be, and slept in the day, he might have been accommodated in the kitchen, and she hinted as much to Jack. To her surprise the lawyer had turned down that idea."You don't want your servants to know that you have a watchman.""What do you imagine they will think he is?" she asked scornfully. "How can I have an old gentleman in the flat without explaining why he is there?""Your explanation could be that he did the boots.""It wouldn't take him all night to do the boots. Of course, I'm too grateful to him to want him to do anything."Mr. Jaggs reported again for duty that night. He came at half-past nine, a shabby-looking old man, and Lydia, who had not yet got used to her new magnificence, came out into the hall to meet him.He was certainly not a prepossessing object, and Lydia discovered that, in addition to his other misfortunes, he had a slight squint."I hadn't an opportunity of thanking you the other day, Mr. Jaggs," she said. "I think you saved my life.""That's all right, miss," he said, in his hoarse voice. "Dooty is dooty!"She thought he was looking past her, till she realised that his curious slanting line of vision was part of his infirmity."I'll show you to your room," she said hastily.She led the way down the corridor, opened the door of a small room which had been prepared for him, and switched on the light."Too much light for me, miss," said the old man, shaking his head. "I like to sit in the dark and listen, that's what I like, to sit in the dark and listen.""But you can't sit in the dark, you'll want to read, won't you?""Can't read, miss," said Jaggs cheerfully. "Can't write, either. I don't know that I'm any worse off."Reluctantly she switched out the light."But you won't be able to see your food.""I can feel for that, miss," he said with a hoarse chuckle. "Don't you worry about me. I'll just sit here and have a big think."If she was uncomfortable before, she was really embarrassed now. The very sight of the door behind which old Jaggs sat having his "big think" was an irritation to her. She could not sleep for a long time that night for thinking of him sitting in the darkness, and "listening" as he put it, and had firmly resolved on ending a condition of affairs which was particularly distasteful to her, when she fell asleep.She woke when the maid brought her tea, to learn that Jaggs had gone.The maid, too, had her views on the "old gentleman." She hadn't slept all night for the thought of him, she said, though probably this was an exaggeration.The arrangement must end, thought Lydia, and she called at Jack Glover's office that afternoon to tell him so. Jack listened without comment until she had finished."I'm sorry he is worrying you, but you'll get used to him in time, and I should be obliged if you kept him for a month.