“Guy naturally wanted to save Pauline from the consequences of her foolishness. He had a little money of his own, left to him by his parents, but it was all in stocks and shares and this was a Friday. The Stock Exchange did not open until Monday. Pauline asked the owner of the gambling club if he would take Guy’s post-dated cheque, but he was in an unpleasant mood.

“You’ve staved me off with promises of repayment for over two months, Lady Tremayne,” he replied. “I will take cash or your husband’s cheque, nobody else’s. And I’m not leaving here without one or the other.”

“Pauline went back to Guy in tears and then she suddenly remembered that the agent had brought in the half-yearly rents of the estate for her husband that very afternoon. She had seen Sir Rupert put the money away in his safe. It was his practice to keep the money there until he could bank it and Pauline and Guy decided to borrow the money.

‘I will sell my shares on Monday and replace the cash so that the old man will know nothing about it,’ Guy promised her.

“‘He won’t be going to the Bank until Wednesday at the very earliest,’ Pauline reassured him.

“Guy knew the combination of the safe and Pauline’s debts were paid and the owner of the gambling club left the house.”

“She would have been wiser to tell her husband,” Skye commented.

“That is what she thought later, but not at the time. She and Guy were congratulating themselves on being clever when a bombshell burst on them. Sir Rupert went to the safe to get some papers and discovered that the money was missing. He called them into his study, told them that he had been robbed and that he intended to notify the Police.

“There was nothing for Guy to do but admit that he had borrowed the money for a special purpose of his own. His uncle was dumbfounded. ‘What do you want with a thousand pounds?’ he enquired. One glance at Pauline’s frightened face might have given him the answer, but he was too intent on cross-examining his nephew. ‘It will be paid back on Monday,’ Guy replied defensively.

“‘That is not what I asked you,’ Sir Rupert barked at him. I suppose, knowing the Tremaynes, the end was inevitable. Both men had fiery and uncontrollable tempers and both men resented the attitude of the other. Guy thought it was unreasonable that his uncle would not trust him and Sir Rupert was infuriated by his nephew’s evasive answers. Finally, as their tempers mounted, unforgiveable things were said. Sir Rupert accused his nephew of being a thief and Guy finally slammed out of the house, vowing that he would never come back.