As soon as I read the warning, I turned away from the gate. I did not go home. Instead, I found a carriage and drove to a hotel called the Hummums in Covent Garden. It was very late, but I managed to get a room. It was a dark, gloomy place on the ground floor. In the middle of the room was a huge, old bed that seemed to fill the entire space.
I was exhausted, but I could not sleep. I lay there in the dark, feeling anxious and miserable. The room smelled of dust and old smoke. Every time I looked at the walls, I imagined I saw the words: DON’T GO HOME.
I wondered why Wemmick had sent the note. Was Provis safe? Had the police found him? I thought about Estella, too, and how we had said goodbye forever that day. My mind was full of painful thoughts. When I finally fell asleep for a short time, I had bad dreams. Even in my sleep, a voice seemed to whisper: “Don’t go home, don’t go home.”
I had asked the hotel servant to wake me at seven o'clock. I knew I had to see Wemmick immediately. I needed to talk to him at his home, where he could speak freely away from his office.
I reached Wemmick’s "Castle" at eight o'clock. I went inside and found him making tea for his father, the Aged Parent.
“Hello, Mr. Pip!” Wemmick said. “So, you saw my note?”
“I did,” I replied. “I didn’t go home.”
“That’s good,” he said, rubbing his hands together. “I left notes at all the gates, just in case. I’ll destroy the others later. It’s always better not to leave evidence.”
Wemmick asked me to help him toast a sausage for his father’s breakfast. While I worked, he spoke to me in a low, serious voice.
“Mr. Pip, we are friends, so I will tell you what I heard,” Wemmick said. “Yesterday, at the office, I heard some news. I heard that a certain person—the man from overseas—is being talked about. People have noticed that he disappeared from his old home abroad.”
I felt a wave of fear. “Go on,” I said.
“I also heard,” Wemmick continued, “that your house has been watched. There are people looking for him, and they think he might be with you.”
“Who is watching me?” I asked.
“I can’t say for sure,” Wemmick replied. “But it is very dangerous. That is why I told you to stay away from your home.”
I asked him about Compeyson, the man who was Provis’s enemy. Wemmick nodded. He confirmed that Compeyson was alive and was currently in London.
“When I couldn’t find you yesterday,” Wemmick said, “I went to see your friend Herbert. I told him he needed to move ‘our friend’ to a safer place immediately.”
“Where is he now?” I asked anxiously.
“Herbert was very smart,” Wemmick explained. “He has a girlfriend named Clara. She lives in a house by the river with her father. It is a quiet place, far away from the city center. Herbert moved our friend there last night. It’s a perfect hiding place because it’s near the ships. When the time is right, you can get him onto a boat and out of the country.”
I was very relieved to hear this. I thanked Wemmick for his help.
“You can go and see him tonight,” Wemmick advised. “See for yourself that he is safe. But after tonight, don’t go back there often. You don’t want anyone to follow you to his new hiding place. And Pip—one more thing. If he has any money or valuables, make sure you keep them safe. You never know what might happen to him.”
Wemmick had to go to work, so I spent the rest of the day at the Castle. It was a quiet, peaceful day. I sat with the Aged Parent, and we had a nice dinner of roast pork. I was so tired that I slept in a chair for a few hours.
When it finally grew dark, I said goodbye to the Aged Parent and left. It was time to go to the house by the river and find Provis.