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"Come your ways in, joy!" she said hospitably. "I was expecting you'd come up tonight: I knew you'd want to have a word with me as soon as you could. Come in and sit you down by the fire it's coldish o' nights, to be sure, and there's frost in the air. "This gentleman may come in, too, mayn't he, Mrs. Hamthwaite?" asked Avice as she and Brereton stepped within the porch.
"He's the lawyer-gentleman who's defending my father you won't mind speaking before him, will you?" "Neither before him, nor behind him, nor yet to him," answered Mrs. Hamthwaite with a chuckle. "I've talked to lawyers afore today, many's the time! Come your ways in, sir sit you down."
"Hexendale is a valley with a village of the same name in it that lies about five miles away on the other side of the moors," said Avice. "There's another line of railway there this man Mrs. Hamthwaite speaks of could come and go by that."
"You're sure about the time?" asked Brereton anxiously. "Certain, master! It was ten minutes to nine when I went out nearly ten when I come back. My clock's always right I set it by the almanack and the sunrise and sunset every day and you can't do better," asserted Mrs. Hamthwaite. "You're equally sure about the second man being Harborough?" insisted Brereton. "You couldn't be mistaken?"
Now you want to know where Harborough was on the night that old fellow was done away with. That's it, master, what?" "That is it," answered Brereton, pressing his arm against Avice, who sat close at his side. "Yes, indeed! And you " "I can tell you where Harborough was between nine o'clock and ten o'clock that night," replied Mrs. Hamthwaite, with a smile that was not devoid of cunning.
"Here," he went on, giving it back to Avice, "you hold it, and I'll strike a match the moonlight's scarcely strong enough. Now," he continued, taking a box of vestas from his pocket and striking one, "steady 'If Miss Harborough will come up to see Susan Hamthwaite I will tell you something that you might like to know. Ah!" he exclaimed, throwing away the match.
But I'll tell you what, if you'll take a bit of advice from an old woman you're a sharp-looking young man, and I'll tell you what I should do if I were in your place now then!" "Well, what?" asked Brereton good-humouredly. Mrs. Hamthwaite clapped him on the shoulder as she opened the door for her visitors. "Find that tall man in the grey clothes!" she said. "Get hold of him!
"Yes?" responded Brereton. Avice drew an envelope from her muff and gave it to him. "A boy brought that to me half an hour ago," she said. "It is from an old woman, Mrs. Hamthwaite, who lives in a very lonely place on the moors up above Hobwick Quarry. Can you read it in this light?" "I will," answered Brereton, drawing a scrap of paper from the envelope.
Hamthwaite. "And if I don't know him, why then, his own daughter doesn't!" "You'd better tell us all about it," said Brereton. Mrs. Hamthwaite gave him a sharp look. "I've given evidence to law folks before today," she said. "You'll want to know what I could tell before a judge, like?" "Of course," replied Brereton. "Well, then " she continued.
Hamthwaite made a face which seemed to suggest uncertainty. "Well, I'll tell you," she answered. "I believe him to be a man that I have seen about this here neighbourhood two or three times during this last eighteen months or so. If you really want to know, I'm a good deal about them moors o' nights; old as I am, I'm very active, and I go about a goodish bit why not?
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