Part 4 (2/2)

The road led through a wood of great beeches and then into a shallow valley, with the green backs of downs peeping over the distant trees After Scotland the air smelt heavy and flat, but infinitely sweet, for the limes and chestnuts and lilac bushes were doe, belohich a clear slow stream flowed between snowy beds of water-buttercups A little above it was a mill; and the lasher made a pleasant cool sound in the scented dusk Somehow the place soothedas I looked into the green depths, and the tune which came to my lips was 'Annie Laurie'

A fisheran to whistle The tune was infectious, for he followed e man in untidy old flannels and a wide-bri on his shoulder He nodded to ht I had never seen a shrewder or better-teainst the bridge, and looked with me at the water

'Clear, isn't it?' he said pleasantly 'I back our Kenner any day against the Test Look at that big fellow Four pounds if he's an ounce But the evening rise is over and you can't tempt 'em'

'I don't see him,' said I

'Look! There! A yard froot hiht swear he was a black stone'

'So,' he said, and whistled another bar of 'Annie Laurie'

'Twisdon's the name, isn't it?' he said over his shoulder, his eyes still fixed on the streaotten all about my alias

'It's a wise conspirator that knows his own naed froe's shadow

I stood up and looked at him, at the square, cleft jaw and broad, lined brow and the firan to think that here at last was an ally worth having His whio very deep

Suddenly he frowned 'I call it disgraceful,' he said, raising his voice 'Disgraceful that an able-bodied et a et no , driven by a young one, he picked up his rod

'That's ate a hundred yards on 'Wait five o round to the back door' And with that he left e with a lawn running down to the strea the path The back door stood open, and a grave butler aitinga passage and up a back staircase to a pleasant bedroo towards the river There I found a complete outfit laid out for s, a brown flannel suit, shi+rts, collars, ties, shaving things and hair-brushes, even a pair of patent shoes 'Sir Walter thought as how Mr Reggie's things would fit you, Sir,' said the butler 'He keeps soular on the week-ends There's a bathroom next door, and I've prepared a 'ot bath Dinner in 'alf an hour, Sir You'll 'ear the gong'

The grave being withdrew, and I sat down in a chintz-covered easy-chair and gaped It was like a pantoardom into this orderly coh why he did I could not guess I looked at ard brown felloith a fortnight's ragged beard, and dust in ears and eyes, collarless, vulgarly shi+rted, with shapeless old tweed clothes and boots that had not been cleaned for the better part of a month I made a fine tramp and a fair drover; and here I was ushered by a priracious ease And the best of it was that they did not even know my naifts the Gods had provided I shaved and bathed luxuriously, and got into the dress clothes and clean crackling shi+rt, which fitted lass showed a not unpersonable young -room where a little round table was lit with silver candles The sight of him - so respectable and established and secure, the eovernment and all the conventions - took me aback and made me feel an interloper He couldn't know the truth about me, or he wouldn't treat me like this I simply could not accept his hospitality on false pretences

'I'ed to you than I can say, but I's clear,' I said 'I'ot to tell you this, and I won't be surprised if you kick ht Don't let that interfere with your appetite We can talk about these things after dinner' I never ate aall day but railway sandwiches Sir Walter did ne and had some uncommon fine port afterwards itthere, waited on by a foot for three weeks like a brigand, with every er-fish in the Zaive thelobe, for he had hunted a bit in his day

We went to his study for coffee, a jolly room full of books and trophies and untidiness and coot rid of this business and had a house of my own, I would create just such a rooot our cigars alight, s over the side of his chair and bade et started with my yarn

'I've obeyed Harry's instructions,' he said, 'and the bribe he offeredto wake me up I'm ready, Mr Hannay'

I noticed with a start that he calledI told of ht I had co on my doorstep I told hin Office conference, and that ot to the ain He heard all about theScudder's notes at the inn

'You've got the breath when I whipped the little book fro of the contents Then I describedwith Sir Harry, and the speeches at the hall At that he laughed uproariously

'Harry talked dashed nonsense, did he? I quite believe it He's as good a chap as ever breathed, but his idiot of an uncle has stuffed his head with ots Go on, Mr Hannay'

My day as roadman excited him a bit He made me describe the two fellows in the car very closely, and seeain when he heard of the fate of that ass jopley

But the old ain I had to describe every detail of his appearance

'Bland and bald-headed and hooded his eyes like a birdHe sounds a sinister wild-fowl! And you dynae, after he had saved you from the police Spirited piece of work, that!' Presently I reached the end of ot up slowly, and looked down at

'You may diser from the law of this land'

'Great Scot!' I cried 'Have they got the ht they have dropped you from the list of possibles'

'Why?' I asked in amazement

'Principally because I received a letter fro of the enius, but he holly honest The trouble about hi a lone hand That made him pretty well useless in any Secret Service - a pity, for he had uncoifts I think he was the bravest ht, and yet nothing would choke him off I had a letter from him on the 31st of May'

'But he had been dead a week by then'

'The letter ritten and posted on the 23rd He evidently did not anticipate an immediate decease His communications usually took a week to reach me, for they were sent under cover to Spain and then to Newcastle He had ahis tracks'

'What did he say?' I staer, but had found shelter with a good friend, and that I would hear froavenear Portland Place I think his object was to clear you if anything happened When I got it I went to Scotland Yard, went over the details of the inquest, and concluded that you were the friend We made inquiries about you, Mr Hannay, and found you were respectable I thought I knew the motives for your disappearance - not only the police, the other one too - and when I got Harry's scrawl I guessed at the rest I have been expecting you any tiine what a load this took off ainst my country's enemies only, and not my country's law

'Now let us have the little note-book,' said Sir Walter

It took us a good hour to work through it I explained the cypher, and he was jolly quick at picking it up He e of it on several points, but I had been fairly correct, on the whole His face was very grave before he had finished, and he sat silent for a while

'I don't knohat to- what is going to happen the day after toly enough in itself But all this about war and the Black Stone - it reads like some wild ement The trouble about him was that he was too romantic He had the artistic temperament, and wanted a story to be better than God meant it to be He had a lot of odd biases, too Jews, for exah finance

'The Black Stone,' he repeated 'DER SCHWARZE STEIN It's like a penny novelette And all this stuff about Karolides That is the weak part of the tale, for I happen to know that the virtuous Karolides is likely to outlast us both There is no State in Europe that wants hi up to Berlin and Vienna and giving one off the track there Frankly, Hannay, I don't believe that part of his story There's some nasty business afoot, and he found out too much and lost his life over it But I am ready to take reat European Power makes a hobby of her spy system, and her methods are not too particular Since she pays by piecework her blackguards are not likely to stick at a murder or two They want our naval dispositions for their collection at the Marinea more' just then the butler entered the room

'There's a trunk-call from London, Sir Walter It's Mr 'Eath, and he wants to speak to you personally'

My host went off to the telephone

He returned in five ize to the shade of Scudder,' he said 'Karolides was shot dead this evening at a few minutes after seven'