He chased
him, and more, I am sure, to frighten him than anything else, when he saw
that the fellow was getting away he fired his gun, just as the dog-cart
was passing. The horse shied, the wheel caught a great stone by the side
of the road, and all four men were thrown out. The man to whom Craig was
handcuffed was stunned, but Craig himself appears to have been unhurt. He
jumped up, took the key of the handcuffs from the pocket of the officer,
undid them, and slipped off into the undergrowth before either the groom
or the other Scotland Yard man had recovered their senses. To cut a long
story short, that was last Thursday, and up till now not a single trace of
the fellow has been discovered."
Quest rose abruptly to his feet.
"I'd like to take this matter up right on the spot where Craig
disappeared," he suggested. "Couldn't we do that?"
"By all means," Lord Ashleigh agreed, touching a bell. "We have several
hours before we change for dinner. I will have a car round and take you to
the spot."
The Professor acquiesced readily, and very soon they stepped out of the
automobile on to the side of a narrow road, looking very much as it had
been described. Further on, beyond a stretch of open common, they could
see the smoke from the gipsy encampment. On their left-hand side was a
stretch of absolutely wild country, bounded in the far distance by the
grey stone wall of the park. Lord Ashleigh led the way through the
thicket, talking as he went.
"Craig came along through here," he explained.
Pages:
175
176
177
178
179
180
181
182
183
184
185
186
187
188
189
190
191
192
193
194
195
196
197
198
199