CHAPTER XXIX. ON THE TRACK.

As early, as practicable in the morning Gerald was astir, continuing his inquiries¹ for the missing girl. Leonard, of course, accompanied him, with the pretence² of being very busy and as anxious as Gerald for the success of the search, but inwardly fuming³ at his step-brother's activity. His spirits rose as hour after hour passed fruitlessly by; his hopeful anticipations⁴ were being realized; Emilia was gone, never to return again.

At three o'clock in the afternoon Gerald came to a standstill. The tortures he was suffering were reflected in his face.

"Poor boy, poor boy!" said Leonard, in his gentlest tone. "I can truly sympathize with you, Gerald."

"I know, Len, I know," said Gerald. "Let me think quietly; don't speak to me. Something must be done; something shall be done. It weighs like a sin upon my soul that I have driven my dear girl to misery⁵. What must she think of me?"

All at once an inspiration fell upon him; his face lighted up; he spoke⁶ with hope and animation⁷.

"Fool that I am," he cried, "to trust myself. I am going to my lawyers; if you care to come with me, Len----"

"Of course I care to come with you," interrupted Leonard. "But why to your lawyers? They cannot assist you."

"They can," said Gerald, in a decided⁸ tone; and they proceeded to the office arm-in-arm.

In a private interview with the head of the firm, at which Leonard was present, Gerald explained what he wanted. The firm was to set all their machinery⁹ to work at once to discover where Emilia had flown to; everything was to be done very quietly, and no expense was to be spared. When the young girl was found she was not to be informed that a search had been made for her, but she was to be carefully and secretly watched, and Gerald was to be immediately communicated with. That done, and Gerald conducted to the house in which Emilia had sought refuge, the business entrusted¹⁰ to the lawyers was concluded. Gerald left with the head of the firm a check for a large amount, in proof that he was thoroughly¹¹ in earnest; and it was arranged that he or Leonard, or both of them, should return to their hotel and wait for news.

"If it is in the middle of the night," said Gerald, "let me know. Not a moment must be lost."

Then the step-brothers left the office and walked to their hotel. Leonard inwardly gave Gerald credit for being much more practical than he had imagined, but still hoped that his good luck would follow him, and that the business would fail. To Gerald the misery of entrusting¹² the task to other hands lay in the necessity of his remaining inactive himself; but although he would not leave the hotel for fear that a messenger from the lawyers might arrive in his absence, he could not endure to remain idle. He sent a note to the kind maiden¹³ ladies who had sheltered Emilia, and received one in reply, to the effect that they had heard nothing of the lost girl; and at least once in every hour he despatched a communication to the lawyers, to which the invariable answer was that the inquiry¹⁴ was proceeding¹⁵, but no clue had yet been discovered. Gerald did not undress that night; he slept fitfully in an arm-chair. Leonard prepared for any sacrifice in the furtherance of his own interests, took off his coat and waistcoat, and made himself as comfortable as he could with wraps and rugs on a sofa in the same room in which Gerald passed the night. Gerald urged him to go to bed, but he would not.

"It is not right," said the unhappy young man, "that you should share my fatigue¹⁶ and troubles. Go and have a good night's rest."

"I distinctly decline," replied Leonard, in an affectionate tone. "Your troubles are my troubles, and I feel them almost as deeply as yourself. My name is Thorough."

"There is no other man like you, I believe," said Gerald. "I will try and repay you one day."

"You shall repay me one day," thought Leonard, "and whatever I get will be richly earned."

Aloud, he said, "The only repayment¹⁷ I ask, my dear boy, is to see you happy with your Emilia. There, let us say no more about it. If you want me in the night you have only to call me, you will find me ready for anything."

Gerald woke a dozen times before daylight, and moved gently about so that he should not disturb his noble friend. He stole down to the night porter.

"No one has come for me?"

"No one, sir."

"If anyone calls send him to me instantly."

"Yes, sir."

It was a fortunate night for the porter, the tips he received from the distracted young man making a very handsome total. Gerald was grateful when morning broke. It would not be long before Emilia was in his arms. He made an effort to repair the disorder¹⁸ in his clothes and appearance, and long before the door of the lawyers' office was open one of his messengers was waiting for tidings. Still the same answer, always the same answer; no traces of Emilia had been found. He paced the room with the restlessness of a wild animal.

Once he stopped, and leaning heavily on Leonard's shoulder, whispered, "If she should be dead! Good God, if she should be dead!"

"So much the better for everybody," thought Leonard, as he passed his arm round Gerald's waist and endeavored to soothe¹⁹ him.

At noon the lawyer paid Gerald a visit.

"You have brought me news?" cried Gerald.

"None of a satisfactory nature," replied the lawyer. "We have ascertained²⁰ for certain that the young lady is not in the town."

"But when she left the house in which she was sheltered," said Leonard, for Gerald was too overpowered to speak, "someone must have seen her."

"If so," said the lawyer, "we have not discovered the person, who has a good reason for coming forward, as we have offered handsome rewards for definite information of any kind concerning her. However, we have now taken other steps, and it is for the purpose of making Mr. Paget acquainted with them that I have paid this visit."

He paused, and Gerald motioned to him to continue.

"Being convinced that Miss Braham has left the town, we have despatched agents in every direction to track her down. These agents understand that they are to pursue their mission in the most delicate manner, and they are instructed to keep in regular telegraphic communication with us. My errand here is to communicate these proceedings²¹ to you, and to advise patience and"--with a significant look at Gerald--"peace of mind."

"I shall not know peace," said Gerald, "till she is found."

"All that is humanly possible is being done; we can do no more."

It was poor comfort, and it did not diminish the young man's distress²². The lawyer remained for a few minutes longer, and then took his departure. The day waned²³, and the night, without any tidings, and on the following morning despair seemed to have reached its height in Gerald's mind.

"Upon my soul," thought Leonard, "I think he is going mad. Well, that would not be a bad ending to this insane hunt. I should be his guardian²⁴, and should know how to take care of him--and his money. His? No, mine, by the laws of nature."

During this day copies of telegrams received by the lawyers were sent to Gerald, but not one of them satisfactory.

"She is lost to me forever," groaned²⁵ Gerald.

"Amen!" thought Leonard.

Early the next morning, however, a telegram was handed in with these words, "On the track." The lawyer hastened to Gerald.

"It is from one of our best men," he said. "Something will be known in the course of the day."

But it was not till another night had passed that Gerald learned where Emilia was.

1 inquiries   

n.调查( inquiry的名词复数 )；疑问；探究；打听

参考例句：

• He was released on bail pending further inquiries. 他获得保释，等候进一步调查。
• I have failed to reach them by postal inquiries. 我未能通过邮政查询与他们取得联系。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

2 pretence   

n.假装，作假；借口，口实；虚伪；虚饰

参考例句：

• The government abandoned any pretence of reform. 政府不再装模作样地进行改革。
• He made a pretence of being happy at the party.晚会上他假装很高兴。

3 fuming   

愤怒( fume的现在分词 )； 大怒； 发怒； 冒烟

参考例句：

• She sat in the car, silently fuming at the traffic jam. 她坐在汽车里，心中对交通堵塞感到十分恼火。
• I was fuming at their inefficiency. 我正因为他们效率低而发火。

4 anticipations   

预期( anticipation的名词复数 )； 预测； （信托财产收益的）预支； 预期的事物

参考例句：

• The thought took a deal of the spirit out of his anticipations. 想到这，他的劲头消了不少。
• All such bright anticipations were cruelly dashed that night. 所有这些美好的期望全在那天夜晚被无情地粉碎了。

5 misery   

n.痛苦，苦恼，苦难；悲惨的境遇，贫苦

参考例句：

• Business depression usually causes misery among the working class.商业不景气常使工薪阶层受苦。
• He has rescued me from the mire of misery.他把我从苦海里救了出来。

6 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

7 animation   

n.活泼，兴奋，卡通片／动画片的制作

参考例句：

• They are full of animation as they talked about their childhood.当他们谈及童年的往事时都非常兴奋。
• The animation of China made a great progress.中国的卡通片制作取得很大发展。

8 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

9 machinery   

n.(总称)机械，机器；机构

参考例句：

• Has the machinery been put up ready for the broadcast?广播器材安装完毕了吗？
• Machinery ought to be well maintained all the time.机器应该随时注意维护。

10 entrusted   

v.委托，托付( entrust的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He entrusted the task to his nephew. 他把这任务托付给了他的侄儿。
• She was entrusted with the direction of the project. 她受委托负责这项计划。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 thoroughly   

adv.完全地，彻底地，十足地

参考例句：

• The soil must be thoroughly turned over before planting.一定要先把土地深翻一遍再下种。
• The soldiers have been thoroughly instructed in the care of their weapons.士兵们都系统地接受过保护武器的训练。

12 entrusting   

v.委托，托付( entrust的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• St. Clare had just been entrusting Tom with some money, and various commissions. 圣？克莱亚刚交给汤姆一笔钱，派他去办几件事情。 来自辞典例句
• The volume of business does not warrant entrusting you with exclusive agency at present. 已完成的营业额还不足以使我方目前委托你方独家代理。 来自外贸英语口语25天快训

13 maiden   

n.少女，处女；adj.未婚的，纯洁的，无经验的

参考例句：

• The prince fell in love with a fair young maiden.王子爱上了一位年轻美丽的少女。
• The aircraft makes its maiden flight tomorrow.这架飞机明天首航。

14 inquiry   

n.打听，询问，调查，查问

参考例句：

• Many parents have been pressing for an inquiry into the problem.许多家长迫切要求调查这个问题。
• The field of inquiry has narrowed down to five persons.调查的范围已经缩小到只剩5个人了。

15 proceeding   

n.行动，进行，(pl.)会议录，学报

参考例句：

• This train is now proceeding from Paris to London.这次列车从巴黎开往伦敦。
• The work is proceeding briskly.工作很有生气地进展着。

16 fatigue   

n.疲劳，劳累

参考例句：

• The old lady can't bear the fatigue of a long journey.这位老妇人不能忍受长途旅行的疲劳。
• I have got over my weakness and fatigue.我已从虚弱和疲劳中恢复过来了。

17 repayment   

n.偿还，偿还款；报酬

参考例句：

• I am entitled to a repayment for the damaged goods.我有权利索取货物损坏赔偿金。
• The tax authorities have been harrying her for repayment.税务局一直在催她补交税款。

18 disorder   

n.紊乱，混乱；骚动，骚乱；疾病，失调

参考例句：

• When returning back,he discovered the room to be in disorder.回家后，他发现屋子里乱七八糟。
• It contained a vast number of letters in great disorder.里面七零八落地装着许多信件。

19 soothe   

v.安慰；使平静；使减轻；缓和；奉承

参考例句：

• I've managed to soothe him down a bit.我想方设法使他平静了一点。
• This medicine should soothe your sore throat.这种药会减轻你的喉痛。

20 ascertained   

v.弄清，确定，查明( ascertain的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The previously unidentified objects have now been definitely ascertained as being satellites. 原来所说的不明飞行物现在已证实是卫星。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• I ascertained that she was dead. 我断定她已经死了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

21 proceedings   

n.进程，过程，议程；诉讼(程序)；公报

参考例句：

• He was released on bail pending committal proceedings. 他交保获释正在候审。
• to initiate legal proceedings against sb 对某人提起诉讼

22 distress   

n.苦恼，痛苦，不舒适；不幸；vt.使悲痛

参考例句：

• Nothing could alleviate his distress.什么都不能减轻他的痛苦。
• Please don't distress yourself.请你不要忧愁了。

23 waned   

v.衰落( wane的过去式和过去分词 )；（月）亏；变小；变暗淡

参考例句：

• However,my enthusiasm waned.The time I spent at exercises gradually diminished. 然而，我的热情减退了。我在做操上花的时间逐渐减少了。 来自《用法词典》
• The bicycle craze has waned. 自行车热已冷下去了。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

24 guardian   

n.监护人；守卫者，保护者

参考例句：

• The form must be signed by the child's parents or guardian. 这张表格须由孩子的家长或监护人签字。
• The press is a guardian of the public weal. 报刊是公共福利的卫护者。

25 groaned   

v.呻吟( groan的过去式和过去分词 )；发牢骚；抱怨；受苦

参考例句：

• He groaned in anguish. 他痛苦地呻吟。
• The cart groaned under the weight of the piano. 大车在钢琴的重压下嘎吱作响。 来自《简明英汉词典》