it was impossible, boxed up as he was in the stuffy atmosphere of the wardrobe, for jack to hear anything of what was going on in the next room. but it was pretty easy to guess what was the meaning of anstruther's strange intrusion. there was only one thing for it, and that was to possess his soul in patience and hope that anstruther had no intention of spending the night there. it was perfectly obvious that he had come only with the intention of hearing what was taking place in the next room. it was impossible for anybody possessed of ordinary intellect not to admire anstruther, whose brilliant qualities could not be ignored. even now, excited as he was, masefield could not repress his admiration for the man he both feared and disliked.
it really was a marvelous thing that anstruther should be so soon upon the track of the man with whom he had parted on friendly terms not an hour ago. was this the result of some perfect system of spying, or was it that anstruther's wonderful instinct led him to believe that carrington was ready to plot against him whilst professing to act upon his advice? masefield had plenty of time to ponder this question, for the figure on the wardrobe above gave no signs as yet of having had enough of it. nor was jack's situation rendered more pleasant by the knowledge that he might have to pass the night in a perpendicular position and half stifled by the stuffy atmosphere of the wardrobe.
but there was always comfort in the knowledge that anstruther's main object was to hear the conversation in the next room. it might possibly last not much longer; at any rate, carrington would have to go to bed some time, and the sooner the better.
an hour passed. an hour which seemed the whole of a long night came to an end at length, and then there was some sound, as if of a body cautiously moving overhead. jack drew a long breath of relief, or at least as long a breath as was possible, considering his stifling surroundings. the critical moment had arrived. had the conference next door finished, or was it merely an interlude? jack wondered. he had been bound to push the door of the wardrobe open a little, and now he saw a long slit of light, which told him that anstruther had turned up the lamps again. he could hear the latter pacing the room in a restless kind of fashion, and muttering to himself as if he were not entirely satisfied with what he had heard.
jack, greatly daring, ventured to push the wardrobe door open slightly further. he caught a side view of his enemy as the latter sat moodily on the bed, with apparently no intention of removing his clothing. it was quite within the bounds of possibility now that anstruther, having satisfied himself, would leave the hotel altogether. a moment later and jack saw that his conclusion was the right one. anstruther turned towards the door.
"no reason to stay here any longer," he muttered. "i'm as tired as a dog. i suppose my nerves are not what they used to be, or perhaps i am growing old; at any rate, this sort of thing tells upon me more than it used to. certainly that half-sovereign of mine was well laid out. oh, you contemptible pair of rascals--so you think you are going to get the best of spencer anstruther. we shall see. and as to padini----"
the speaker shook his fist in the direction of the next room, and walked quietly in the direction of the door. jack could hear the key turn in the lock. he felt a suggestion of draught as if the room were now open to the corridor. the next instant the lights vanished, and anstruther had left the room. jack crept out into the comparatively pure atmosphere, and wiped the moisture from his forehead. he preferred to remain in the darkness till he had made up his mind what to do. looking up in the direction of the ventilator, he could see that the lights were now extinguished in carrington's bedroom. this was plain evidence of the fact that the conference was concluded, and that there was no occasion to stay any longer.
"i'll get out of it too," jack muttered to himself. "it is only a matter of forfeiting my sovereign, and what i have learned is cheap at the price; but i shall have to be cautious."
it was perhaps fortunate for jack that a somewhat large rush of late guests came into the hotel at the same moment. most of them were racing men returning from a big meeting up north. anyway, the servants appeared to be particularly busy, so that jack felt that he could slip away without any suspicions as to his movements. he waited just a moment till the corridor was practically empty, then sauntered towards the head of the stairs with the air of a man who has just come in.
he had practically reached the big square landing, when a bedroom door opened cautiously, and a man's face peeped out. it occurred to jack that possibly this man was looking for something, or that he was going to deposit his boots outside, or something of that kind. but the stranger, who was about half-dressed, did nothing of the kind. on the contrary, he raised his finger in a mysterious manner, and beckoned deliberately to jack. he did not appear in the least agitated; on the contrary, his expression was one of caution and mistrust. jack, thinking that it might have been a little play of fancy on his part, would have moved on, only the stranger stepped briskly outside and touched him on the arm.
"is there anything i can do for you?" jack asked politely. "i suppose your bell's gone wrong, or something of that sort; i am quite at your service."
"will you be good enough to step inside my room?" the stranger said. "the request will probably strike you as being somewhat out of the common, but i really have something important to say to you."
as was quite natural in the circumstances, jack hesitated for a moment. like most people, he had heard and read a great deal about strange hotel outrages, and it occurred to him now that he might have been chosen for the victim of one of these. possibly the stranger was mad, or possibly he was suffering from alcoholic excess. but jack felt more reassured as he carefully examined the features of the stranger.
he was a tall, slim man, who palpably was recovering from some dangerous illness. it was either that, or he was far gone in consumption. jack could see that the mere act of standing there was a weariness of the flesh; he noted also the attenuated arms, which at one time or another must have been exceedingly powerful, for the sinews and muscles seemed to hang upon the bones like rags.
but it was the face of the man that attracted jack's attention most. it was long and lean and pallid; there were thin strips of plaster skilfully bandaged about the eyes and mouth, and down the sides of the long, hawk-like nose. still, behind it all, there was ever the suggestion that this man was a sportsman and an athlete. jack seemed to know by instinct that his new acquaintance was a man who had passed much time in warm climates. he began to wonder if the stranger had laid violent hands upon himself. it was very strange to see all that maze of plaster, as if the face had been carved in some grotesque fashion with a knife.
"do please come inside for a moment," the stranger pleaded. "i assure you i mean no harm, and our conversation may result in a wonderful deal of good. you evidently regard me as a kind of lunatic. well, in some respects, perhaps, you are right; but there is a good deal of method in my madness."
jack still hesitated. the stranger sighed bitterly.
"i see i must be candid with you," he said. "i am taking a great risk, but i am trusting you because i never make a mistake about a face. you have been closeted for some time in the same room with spencer anstruther, but that you are an accomplice of his i feel sure is impossible. now will you come inside my room?"
jack hesitated no longer. he strode into the room, and his new acquaintance closed the door behind him. the apartment was furnished half as a sitting, half as a bedroom. a fire burned in the grate, an invalid armchair was pulled up to one side of it. there was plenty of proof, also, of the fact that the occupant of the room was an invalid. here were bottles with chemists' labels; here were some cotton wool and a case of surgical instruments. in one corner of the room was a small iron bedstead, which was obviously placed there for the use of a male nurse. "you are quite right," the stranger said, as if reading jack's thoughts. "as a matter of fact, there is no reason why you should have accepted my invitation at all--one hears of so many strange things happening in these big modern hotels. as you imagine, i am just recovering from a dangerous illness, the result of a very delicate operation. but we need not go into that. what you are dying to find out is how i know all about spencer anstruther."
"i confess i am a little curious on the point," jack said drily. "you are taking a great risk when you mention his name and assume that i am no friend of his."
"you couldn't be with a face like yours," the stranger replied. "a dupe, perhaps, or a man he was making use of; but never one of his infamous gang. and yet you were in that room with him a long time to-night."
jack hesitated a moment before he spoke again.
"look here," he said. "you have been fairly candid with me, and in return i will be as candid with you. anstruther is a great scoundrel, and it is to my interest and to the interests of those i love that the man should be exposed and rendered harmless for the future. now, how did you know that we were in the same bedroom together?"
"that is easily explained," said the other. "my male nurse was suddenly called away this evening on important business. i have been feeling so much better the last day or two that i decided to do without a substitute. mind you, i knew perfectly well that anstruther was frequently in the habit of spending an occasional night here. and i had my own reasons for keeping out of his way. but something happened to my bell to-night, and i had to go to the top of the corridor and use the bell there. it was quite by accident that i saw you enter bedroom no. 14, and it was quite by accident, also, that i heard anstruther demand to know why he could not have the same room. i listened with curiosity, because the thing struck me as very strange. it struck me as stranger still when i heard anstruther say that the room was empty, and saw him close the door behind him."
"a kind of vanishing trick," jack smiled. "well, yes, if you like to put it in that way," the other said. "it was either one of two things--you were there as an accomplice, which i refuse for one moment to believe, or you had hidden yourself in the room for the purpose of watching anstruther. in fact, seeing that circumstances were going for you, you laid a neat little trap for anstruther. have i not guessed it correctly?"
"your deductions are perfectly sound," jack said. "i deliberately chose that bedroom with the full intention of overhearing what was going on in the room behind. when i heard anstruther come in, i hid myself in the wardrobe and stayed there till he left the room. now i have told you all that has happened so far as i am concerned. it is your turn to be communicative."
"i am exceedingly sorry to appear discourteous," the stranger said; "but i am afraid i cannot tell you very much. the mere mention of anstruther's name always throws me into a kind of terror. i may be able to help you later on, but for the present i am bound to silence. but tell me now, do you see any likeness between anstruther and myself?"
the question was asked with an eagerness that struck jack as being far beyond the necessity of so simple a query. the speaker seemed to fairly tremble for jack's reply.
"there does not begin to be any resemblance," he said. "the question strikes me as being a strange one. and now let me ask you a question. from what you say, you appear to know anstruther exceedingly well. now, did you ever notice his likeness to anybody? you have seen him when he has been greatly moved to passion, i suppose?"
the stranger shuddered, and turned away his head.
"that is sufficient answer for me," jack said. "i dare say you have noticed those strange nostalgo posters. did it ever occur to you that anstruther is not unlike those pictures?"
the effect of the question was extraordinary. the stranger looked at jack with eyes filled with terror.
"strange, very strange," he muttered hoarsely. "you have hit it exactly. may i ask, have you ever been in mexico?"
"no," jack replied; "but i know a man who has. did you ever meet an individual out there called seymour?"
