wilfrid mercer had walked back to oldborough very thoughtfully. the events of the past hour or two appeared to have changed the whole current of his existence. he had parted with the old life altogether, and had set himself down doggedly to the humdrum career of a country practitioner. no more long voyages, no adventures more exciting than the gain of a new patient or the loss of an old one. he had not disguised from himself that life in oldborough would be monotonous, possibly nothing but a sordid struggle. but he would get used to it in time, and perhaps even take an interest in local politics.
but already all was changed. it was changed by a simple accident to samuel flower. there was some inscrutable mystery here and, to a certain extent, wilfrid held the key to it. it seemed to him, speaking from his own point of view, that he knew far more about the affair than flower himself.
it was as well, too, that nothing should have happened to cause beatrice galloway any fear for the future. she might be puzzled and curious, but wilfrid did not believe that she attached any significance to the piece of string. the string she found appeared to have been dropped by accident as, no doubt, it was; but behind that there lay something which spoke only to wilfrid mercer and samuel flower.
the more wilfrid debated the matter, the more certain did he feel that flower saw in this thing a deadly menace to himself. wilfrid had not forgotten the look of livid fear on flower's face when beatrice handed the string to him. he had not forgotten the sudden cry that burst from flower's lips. he did not believe that the ship-owner suffered from neuralgia. the most important point was to find out whether flower understood the nature of the warning. did he know that the mystery had been hatched in the malay archipelago? did he know that the natives there had invented a mode of taking life which baffled even modern medical science? if flower knew, then he might make a bold bid for life and liberty. if not, then his very existence was in peril.
so far wilfrid's reasoning was clear. but now he struck against a knot in the wood and his plane could no go farther. what connexion was there between a prosaic british citizen like samuel flower and a bloodthirsty malay on the prowl for vengeance? so far as wilfrid knew, flower had spent the whole of his life in london, where such contingencies are not likely to occur. the point was a difficult one to solve, and wilfrid was still hammering at it when he reached home. something like illumination came to him while dressing for dinner.
he wondered why he had not thought of it before. of course, as a ship-owner, samuel flower would come in contact with all sorts and conditions of men. the crews of the flower line were drawn from all parts of the world. and amongst them malays and lascars figured prominently. wilfrid recollected that there had been many malays engaged in the mutiny on the guelder rose. matters began to grow more clear.
the night was fine and bright and the sky full of stars as wilfrid set out to walk to maldon grange. he would not be justified in the extravagance of a cab, for the distance was not more than four miles and he had been told of a short cut across the fields. at the end of half an hour a moon crept over from the wooded hills on the far side, so that objects began to stand out clear and crisp. here was the path he must follow, and there were the spinneys and covers with which maldon grange was surrounded. most of the fallen leaves were rotting under foot. the ride down which wilfrid had turned was soft and mossy to his tread. he went along so quietly that he did not even disturb the pheasants roosting in the trees. he passed a rabbit or two so close that he could have touched them with his walking-stick. the rays of the moon penetrated the branches here and there and threw small patches of silver on the carpet of turf. wilfrid had reached the centre of the wood where the undergrowth had been cleared away recently. looking down the long avenue of trees, it seemed as if he were standing in the nave of a vast cathedral filled with great stone columns. for a moment he stood admiring the quiet beauty of it. then he moved on again. his one thought was to reach his destination. he did not notice for a moment or two that a figure was flitting along the opening to his left or that another figure a little way off came out to meet it. when he did become aware that he was no longer alone he paused in the shadow of a huge beech and watched. he did not want to ask who these people were. probably he was on the track of a couple of poachers.
but though the figures stood out clearly in the moonlight, wilfrid could see no weapons, or nets, or other implements of the poaching trade. these intruders seemed to be little more than boys if size went for anything, and surely two poachers would not have seated themselves on the grass and proceeded to light a fire as these men were doing now. they sat gravely opposite one another talking and gesticulating in a way not in the least like the style of phlegmatic englishmen. in a fashion, they reminded wilfrid of two intelligent apes discussing a handful of nuts in some zoological garden. but then apes were not clothed, and these two strangers were clad. it was, perhaps, no business of his, but he stood behind the shadow of a tree watching them. he saw one reach out and gather a handful of sticks together; then a match was applied and the whole mass burst into a clear, steady and smokeless flame. the blaze hovered over the top of the sticks much as the flame of a spirit lamp might have done. with wilfrid's knowledge of camp fires he was sure that a casual handful of sticks would never have given so clear and lambent a flame. he forgot all about his appointment at maldon grange, his curiosity overcoming every other feeling. he really must discover what these fellows were doing.
it was easy to creep from tree to tree until he was within thirty or forty yards of the two squatting figures. he saw that the fire was burning as brightly and clearly as ever. he saw one of the strangers produce a small brass pot into which he dropped a pinch or two of powder. then the vessel was suspended over the fire, and a few moments later a thin violet vapour spread itself out under the heavy atmosphere of the trees until the savour of it reached the watcher's nostrils. it was a weird sort of perfume, sweet and intensely soothing to the nerves. it seemed to wilfrid that he had never smelt the like of it before, and yet there was a suggestion of familiarity about it. where had he been in contact with such vapour? how did it recall the tropics? why was it associated with some tragedy? but rack his brains as he might he could make nothing of it. he felt like a man who tries to fit together the vague outlines of some misty dream. doubtless it would come to him presently, but for the moment he was at fault. his idea now was to creep farther forward and try to see something of the faces of this mysterious pair. the mossy carpet under foot was soft enough, but there was one thing wilfrid had not reckoned on. placing his foot on a pile of dead leaves a stick underneath snapped suddenly with a noise like a pistol-shot. in a flash mercer crouched down, but it was too late. as if it had been blown out with a fierce blast of wind, the fire was extinguished, the brass pot vanished, and the two figures dissolved into thin air. it was amazing, incredible. here were the scattered trees with the moonlight shining through the bare branches. here was the recently cleared ground. but where had those wanderers vanished? wilfrid dashed forward hastily, but they had gone as swiftly and illusively as a pair of squirrels. mercer drew his hand across his eyes and asked whether he were not the victim of hallucination. it was impossible for those men to have left the wood already. and, besides, there were the charred embers of the sticks yet warm to the touch, though there was no semblance of flame, or even a touch of sullen red. there was nothing but to go on to maldon grange and wait the turn of events. that these strangers were after no good wilfrid felt certain. but whether they had or had not any connexion with the warning to samuel flower he could not say. he would keep the discovery to himself.
he was in the house at length. he heard his name called out as he entered the drawing-room. he was glad when beatrice came forward, for he felt a little shy and uncomfortable before all these strangers.
"i am so glad you came," beatrice murmured. "stay here a moment. i have something important to say to you."
