anything----"

"You didn't notice that I had too much wine with my dinner?"

Beatrice was fain to admit that she had not noticed anything of the
kind. She wondered how much her father really knew as to what had
happened.

"There has been a great deal of fuss," Sir Charles said. He proceeded to
dress himself in certain old clothes and took up a beard and spectacles
from the dressing table. Beatrice watched him with a growing feeling
that he had taken leave of his senses.

"Why are you going to use those things?" she asked.

"Because it is absolutely necessary," Sir Charles said irritably. "I
came here in this disguise to pick out certain things that I needed. A
kind friend furnished this disguise, and also money for me to get away."

"But why do you want to get away?" Beatrice asked, more puzzled than
ever.

"My dear child, your memory must be sadly defective," Sir Charles said
sharply. "You seem to forget that I am in great difficulties. Richford
was going to put me right, but Richford is dead. It is just my luck."

"Who told you that?" Beatrice asked. "Why it was only tonight----"

"My dear, there was a gentleman outside the hotel who told somebody
else. Richford was arrested at the house of a friend of mine; I saw the
thing done. Then I realized that my position was desperate. You see I
have been stopping at Wandsworth with a friend for the last two or three
days."

Beatrice began to understand a little. The cunning nature of the plot
was beginning to unfold itself before her.

"The name of that friend is Mr. Carl Sartoris, I suppose?" Beatrice
asked.

"That's the man. Though I cannot see how you came to know that. I met
Sartoris before on business. He wanted me to sell him some rubbishy Ruby
Mines concessions that Lord Edward Decie and myself procured years ago.
I refused to take his money then; it did not seem fair. Besides I was in
funds at the time."

Beatrice could hardly refrain from smiling at the naive confession.

"I should like to hear more about that," she said.

"I was just coming to it," Sir Charles went on. "I must have taken too
much wine on that night; I seemed to sleep for days. When I came to
myself I was in a strange room, with a doctor bending over me."

"A tall man with a beard? A man who carries drink all over him?"
Beatrice asked.

"That is the fellow," Sir Charles said with obvious surprise, "though
how you could know all these things puzzles me. Name of Bentwood.
Sartori