*CHAPTER XLII*
*TREASURE TROVE*
Mercer's patient was sleeping peacefully. There appeared to be no reasonwhy he should give any further trouble, and so far the nurse had not putin an appearance. Wilfrid concluded that only something out of thecommon would have brought Uzali and Russell at that time in the morning.From the way in which they spoke, too, their errand did not admit ofdelay. In the circumstances, it was no bad thing, either, to have acouple of friends in the house.
"One moment," Mercer whispered. "Stay where you are and I will let youin."
He unfastened the bolts of the front door, and the intruders strode intothe dining-room where the lights were full on.
"Perhaps you had better explain," Wilfrid said. "I have been wonderingwhat had become of you, Russell. I could not stay in London as I had myown affairs to look after, and that is why I am here. But how did youguess it?"
"It was mere chance," Uzali explained. "As for myself, I was bound tocome here. I came to prevent bloodshed. We calculated you had leftLondon and we thought it possible that Miss Galloway would prevail uponyou to take up your quarters here for the present, and upon that theoryI didn't hesitate to give you a signal."
"This is the second night I have been here," Wilfrid explained. "MissGalloway is staying with my mother in Oldborough. But tell me what youwant. Mr. Flower's nurse has gone into Castlebridge for somenecessaries and there is nobody but myself to look after the patient.And he is in no fit state to leave, I assure you. He has led me a prettydance already to-night and I shall be very glad when Mason comes back."
"Is he in his right senses?" Uzali asked.
"Oh, dear, no, and I question very much if he ever will be again. Buttell me what you want me to do. You would not have come at this hour ofthe night unless yours had been an exceedingly desperate errand."
"I forgot," Uzali murmured. "I suppose everybody has gone to bed exceptyourself. If we stay here we are not likely to be disturbed by theservants."
"You need not worry about them," Wilfrid remarked.
"Very good. In that case we are safe. And now, assuming the nurseknows nothing about the family, he will be prepared to believe anythingyou say about us. We want to stay here just as we are till morning onthe pretext that we are friends of Mr. Flower's and have come down onbusiness. The rest you can leave to us. I suppose when the nurse comesback you will be free to help us if we give the signal. We may needyour services."
Wilfrid nodded emphatically. It was plain that Uzali meant to say nomore for the moment and he went upstairs again into the sick-room.Flower was lying perfectly still, and there seemed to be no suggestionthat he was likely to wake up. A few minutes later there was a ring atthe front-door bell and Mason returned. He seemed to have all hewanted, but he paused and looked at Wilfrid as he caught the murmur ofvoices in the dining-room.
"Friends of your patient," Wilfrid said glibly. "They have come fromLondon on urgent business. I presume they were not aware that Mr.Flower was so ill. They will stay till morning on the chance of Mr.Flower's being able to see them."
The nurse smiled grimly.
"There is no reason why they shouldn't wait, sir," he said. "But it isprecious little business Mr. Flower will be able to transact for sometime to come. I hope he was all right while I was away."
Wilfrid smiled in non-committal fashion. On the whole, it seemed bestto say nothing about the patient's escapade.
"You had better get yourself some tea or coffee," he said. "I don'tmind sitting up for another hour or so, and then I shall go to bed."
The nurse made his preparations by means of a spirit-lamp which he hadin the dressing-room. Meanwhile, Wilfrid sat in a chair before the fireand dozed off. He was utterly fagged. The anxieties of the day hadtold upon him more than he was aware. At last the nurse aroused him andintimated that one of the gentlemen downstairs wished to speak to him.In the interval Uzali and Russell had not wasted their time. At firstthey sat smoking and helping themselves freely to the decanters on thetable till Uzali grew more taciturn and appeared to be listeningintently.
"What is the matter?" Russell asked.
"Our friends are beginning to move," Uzali said in a whisper. "I havenot been far out in my deductions and, if you will oblige me, I shall beglad if you will throw your cigarette into the fire whilst I turn thelight off."
Russell obeyed without comment. He felt he was entirely in the hands ofhis companion. Uzali proceeded to shut off the light and also to openone of the windows that led to the lawn. He placed a screen across thefire and nodded with the air of a man who is satisfied with his plans.
"All right so far," he muttered. "Now I want you to stand by the windowwith me, keeping quiet and being on the alert for what is going to takeplace. You will not find it so very dark when your eyes becomeaccustomed to the gloom."
It was as Uzali said. As Russell's gaze was turned towards the darknesshe began to make out objects here and there till it was possible to tellwhere the shrubs lay and where the flower-beds were located. Everythingwas extremely still and the faintest sound could be heard. A quarter ofan hour passed, then Russell felt his companion's hand clutch eagerly onhis arm.
"There!" Uzali whispered. "Did you see anything? Did you hearanything? Now listen! I am not mistaken."
As Russell strained his ear he seemed to hear a footstep coming down thegravel path. By and by a tiny twig snapped and it could no longer bedoubted that somebody was walking on the path. A moment later and afigure loomed against the grey of the sky, a figure which paused amoment and then crossed on to the lawn. Russell felt his heart beatingfaster, especially when he realized that the outline was quite familiar.
"You could see that, anyway," Uzali whispered.
"Oh, I can see that," Russell replied in the same low tone. "It seemsincredible, and I may be mistaken, but if that man isn't Jansen, call meblind."
A dry chuckle broke from Uzali's lips. He was unquestionably pleased atsomething. He was no longer moody and despondent, but had the alertmanner of a man who means business.
"You are not mistaken," he said. "That is Jansen. I dare say youwonder how he got here. There is only one way in which he could havereached Maldon Grange; he caught the train which we missed. Ah, weshall see some fun presently. Our friend yonder little knows the dangerhe stands in."
"What on earth is he up to?" Russell exclaimed.
So far as could be seen in the darkness, Jansen seemed to be jugglingwith a ball of strong string. In one hand he carried a bundle of pegswhich he proceeded to drive into the lawn at unequal distances. Thehead of the hammer was muffled and only the faintest sound came inresponse to his blows. As the work went on Jansen could be heardchuckling to himself. Soon he stood upright as if he had completed histask and then he connected the irregular row of pegs with the string.It suddenly flashed upon Russell what he was doing.
"Why, that is an old burglar trick," he exclaimed. "Jansen means tomake an attempt upon the house and trusts to those pegs and strings tosave him in case of pursuit. Hadn't we better catch him red-handed?"
"Plenty of time for that," Uzali said with a note of laughter in hisvoice. "See, he has vanished. It looks as if he had gone down to thebasement. Now we shan't be long. Look over at the big cedar tree andtell me what you see; quick!"
Two slight shadowy figures like huge night moths seemed to flit out fromunder the gloom of the cedar and make their way towards the spot whereJansen had gone. Russell would have darted out only Uzali restrainedhim.
"Wait," he whispered, "another ten minutes."
The minutes passed slowly, then came a sound like the splitting of wood,followed by a laugh which was drowned in a scream echoing horribly farand wide in the silence.
"Now," said Uzali sternly, "it is time to act!"