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.He was sore at heart, for, except the impolitic Blake, he did not seem to have a friend in the world.There had come one or two kind little notes from the ladies "up the row," as they called the Stannard-Truscott household when they did not care to be more explicit; but these had ceased, and what was worse, in his days of worry and trouble and heartsickness, Ray had sought comfort in an old solace, that had done no great harm when he was living his vigorous out-of-door life, but was playing the mischief with his judgment and general condition now that he was penned up in the narrow limits of his quarters.Very, very anxious had Mrs.Stannard's face become; very wistful and anxious, too, was Miss Sanford's; and very sympathetic was Mrs.Truscott's.The first few days of his arrest they used to stroll down the line, and make it a point to go there and chat with him on his piazza; and this exasperated old Whaling, who was indignant that the cavalry ladies should make a martyr of their regimental culprit.The third day of his arrest, they were all seated there on the piazza, while Ray sat at his open window, and Hogan, his orderly, had led Dandy around to the front, and the pretty sorrel—the light of his master's eyes until eclipsed by one before which even Dandy's paled its ineffectual fire—was cropping the juicy herbage in the little grass plat in front of the piazza and being fed with loaf-sugar by delicate hands.Blake was sprawled over the railing, limp and long-legged, chatting with Mrs.Truscott.Miss Sanford was seated nearer the window, where Ray's eager eyes seemed to chain her, and Mrs.Stannard was doing most of the talk, for they seemed strangely silent.It was a pleasant picture of loyalty and esprit de corps, thought Mr.Warner, as he came down from the office; but to old Whaling, coming home crabbed from the store, where his post quartermaster had beaten him several games of pool, it was a galling sight.The ladies bowed in quiet, modified courtesy,—there was no cordiality whatever in it.Blake straightened up and saluted his superior in a purely perfunctory style that had nothing of deference and little of respect in it, and the colonel and his quartermaster both raised their caps in evident embarrassment.They looked back at Dandy after they had passed on a few rods, and Blake muttered,—"Now, Billy boy, they'll be sending you a note to keep your horse out of your front yard hereafter." But Blake had undershot the mark.That evening there came bad news.Rallston had been named as one of the principal witnesses, and Ray had telegraphed and written to his sister at Omaha asking where he was.His letter explained the situation he was in, and, though he would say nothing to accuse her husband, he told her that one of the allegations was that he had accepted five hundred dollars from him as a bribe to induce him to "pass" certain horses.The facts were these: Rallston had been among the first to welcome him to Kansas City, had taken him to his own rooms, had been most cordial and kind, had brought all manner of loving inquiries from sister Nell, and an invitation from her to visit them at Omaha before his return.Ray did not and would not drink anything beyond a little wine at dinner, nor could he be induced to touch a card at play, though every evening some of Rallston's friends were there playing poker, and Ray was a laughing and interested spectator.In the course of two or three days Rallston had grown very confidential, and had finally, most gracefully, told Ray that he had disliked to mention it until he felt he knew him well, but that Nelly had told him her brother had some outstanding debts; he owed money to several different parties and it worried him; they were dunning him all at the same time, and he could only meet their claims successively."Now," said Rallston, "why not let me be your banker? Let me hand you the amount you owe these fellows.Pay 'em off at once, and then you're a free man.You can repay me when you choose, and if you never do, why, it's all right—it's Nell's present to you.I've got several thousand dollars in the bank this moment that I've no use for;" and Ray had thanked him from the bottom of his heart and accepted.Later there began to grow a breach.Rallston had quickly seen how keen an eye Ray had for defects in horseflesh, and had striven to get him to accept some horses he knew to be "off color [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]