Part 22 (1/2)

”Pray go on,” Gore managed to say under his breath.

”I have a special reason,” said Rendel, ”for wanting to remember what happened in my study yesterday afternoon.”

”Yesterday afternoon?” said Gore. ”Did anything particular happen?”

”That is what I want to know,” said Rendel, trying to speak calmly and quietly. ”You will oblige me very much if you will try to remember exactly what happened all the time, from the moment you came into the room until you left it.”

Gore made an effort to pull himself together. There was no difficulty, alas! for him in remembering every single thing that had taken place--the difficulty was not to show that he remembered too well.

”When I came in,” he said, endeavouring to speak in an ordinary tone, ”you were at your writing-table.”

”I was,” said Rendel, watching him.

”And then I sat down in an armchair and read the _Mayfair Gazette_----”

and he stopped.

”Yes. All that,” Rendel said, ”I remember, of course. Thacker came in telling me Lord Stamfordham was there, and I rushed out, shutting the roller top of my writing-table, which closes with a spring. I was especially careful to shut it, as it had valuable papers in it.”

”Indeed?” said Sir William, almost inaudibly.

”Yes, and among them,” Rendel said, watching the effect of his words, ”a map--that map of Africa which is reproduced this morning in the _Arbiter_.”

”In your writing-table?” Gore said, with quivering lips.

”Yes, in my writing-table, out of which it must have been taken.”

”That is very serious,” Gore forced himself to say.

”It is very serious,” said Rendel, ”as you will see. When I came back and had finished my work on the papers I did them up myself in a packet and sent them to Lord Stamfordham.”

”Your messenger was not trustworthy, apparently,” said Gore, recovering himself.

”My messenger was Thacker,” Rendel said, ”who is absolutely trustworthy.

Lord Stamfordham himself told me that he had received the packet with my seal intact.”

”Still,” said Gore, ”servants have been known to sell State secrets before now.”

”But not Thacker,” said Rendel. ”However, of course I shall ask him; I must ask every one in the house, for it must have been by some one here that the thing was done, that the map was got out.”

”I thought you said the table was locked?”

”It was locked, yes,” said Rendel, ”but I have learnt this morning that papers can be pulled out from under the lid. Rachel got a piece of foolscap paper for you in that way.”

”Did she?” said Gore, feeling that he had unwittingly supplied one link in the chain of evidence.

”There was only one person, so far as I know,” said Rendel, ”in the room while that paper was in my desk, who could have pulled it out and looked at it, and apparently made an unwarrantable use of it.” The question that he expected to hear from Gore did not follow. Rendel waited, then he went on, ”That person was--you.”

”What do you mean?” said Gore, sitting up, his colour going and coming quickly.

”My words, I think, are quite plain,” Rendel said. ”I mean that all the evidence, circ.u.mstantial, I grant, points--you must forgive me if I am wronging you--to your having taken out the map.”