"Sir Gilbert is just going out," he said. "He is too busy this morning to
see any one."
I kept my foot in the door.
"He told me to come," I declared. "I cannot go away without seeing him."
"Then you can stay where you are," he declared, trying to close the door.
"You can see him as he comes out."
I stepped by him quickly. He was a small man, but he seized me pluckily
by the collar. Just then we heard a door open, and my cousin stepped out
dressed for the street.
"What is the matter, Groves?" he asked sharply.
"This fellow has forced his way in, sir," the man answered. "He says that
you told him to come."
My cousin stood drawing on his gloves, and eyed me superciliously.
"I think," he remarked, "that that is a mistake, isn't it? I am quite
sure that I have never seen you before in my life!"
I felt inclined to smile, but the man was watching us.
"I have some business with you, sir," I said deferenially. "I am not
begging, and I will not keep you longer than two minutes."
My cousin stepped back into the sitting-room.
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