United States or Bouvet Island ? Vote for the TOP Country of the Week !


As they drew near, she stopped and held out her hand. "Mr. Gimblet?" she asked. "Yes," he said; "and you are Miss Byrne, are you not?" He looked at her keenly as he spoke, noticing that her eyes were red and swollen, and that her whole bearing was eloquent of sorrow and want of sleep. She lifted a miserable face to him. "Yes," she said. "I am so glad you have come, but it has seemed a long while.

It was not difficult to deduce from these sounds that Lord Ashiel had arrived, and that the little party of three had gone in to dinner. It was half an hour more before Gimblet rose, and walked quietly over to the window. He drew the blind cautiously aside and looked out.

That is what I fear. Not exactly murder; certainly no violent open assault. But we are all liable to suffer from accidents, and what is to prevent my meeting with a fatal one? That is more the line they will adopt, if, as I imagine, they have decided on my death." "If ever there were a case in which prevention is better than cure," said Gimblet, "I think you will own that we have it here.

"That certainly seems very improbable," Gimblet commented. "Yes, it does. Still, I feel sure she was speaking the truth. Why, indeed, should she not do so? It seems that Byrne has married again, and that his wife has already three daughters of her own; so, as she says, he would probably be glad enough to get the fourth one off his hands, as they are not well off." "Yes," said Gimblet.

"But I shan't feel easy in my mind till I've looked through everything, and I'm getting a very useful idea of the estate accounts in the meantime. It is rather a long business, but I'm getting on with it, slow but sure. There are such a fearful lot." "Are all these cupboards full of papers?" Gimblet asked, looking round him at the numerous little doors in the panelling.

"What name?" breathed Gimblet; but Higgs only shook his head. The detective went forward and spoke to his visitor. "Please come in," he said. "Won't you sit down?" And he pushed a chair towards her. "Thank you," said the lady, taking the seat he offered. "I hope I do not disturb you; but I have come on business," she added, as the door closed behind Higgs. "Yes?" said Gimblet interrogatively.

"No," she replied. "I do not think any terms are possible." "How did this person obtain possession of the papers?" Gimblet asked after a moment. "Did he steal them from you?" "No." "From your friends?" She hesitated. "No not exactly." "From whom, then?" asked Gimblet in surprise. "I suppose they were yours in the first place?"

He had seen that tweed before; the short girl with her back to him was wearing the dress in which he had seen her on the Wednesday night, searching among Lord Ashiel's papers in the library at the castle. It was Julia Romaninov beyond a doubt, and Gimblet drew back quickly and took up his position behind the funnels on the after-deck.

David's loader reported afterwards that that young gentleman and Miss Byrne, when she waited with him in the butt, seemed to find very little to talk about. And it was a long wait before any birds came up, on that beat. It was a few days after this that Gimblet, taking up an evening paper at the Club, was startled to see a sinister headline of "Murder," immediately followed by the name of Ashiel.

The man readily consented, and Gimblet, who was following on foot, was called and informed of the proposed change of route. He scrambled into the back of the cart and they rattled along the upper road, the stout pony no doubt wearing a very aggrieved expression under its blinkers.