ere was a snarling scream of pain, and the big pup sprang for his
assailant. An old, grey hound came up and seemed to take in the situation
at a glance. With a deep growl he bounded at Henson and caught him by the
throat. Before the ponderous impact of that fine free spring Henson went
down heavily to the ground.

"Help!" he gurgled. "Help! help! help!"

The worrying teeth had been firmly fixed, the ponderous weight pressed
all the breath from Henson's distressed lungs. He gurgled once again,
gave a little shuddering sigh, and the world dwindled to a thick sheet of
blinding darkness.

CHAPTER LVII

HIDE-AND-SEEK

Bell's professional enthusiasm got the better of his curiosity for the
moment. It was a nice psychological problem. Already Steel was
impulsively busy in the conservatory pulling the pots down. It was a
regretful thing to have to do, but everything had to be sacrificed, David
shut his teeth grimly and proceeded with his task.

"What on earth are you doing?" Bell asked, with a smile.

"Pulling the place to pieces," David responded. "I daresay I shall feel
pretty sick about it later on, but the thing has to be done. Cut those
wires for me, and let those creepers down as tenderly as possible. We
can't get to the little pots until we have moved the big ones."

Bell coolly declined to do anything of the kind. He surveyed the two
graceful banks of flowers there, the carefully trained creepers trailing
so naturally and yet so artistically from the roof to the ground, and the
sight pleased him.

"My dear chap," he said, "I am not going to sit here and allow you to
destroy the work of so many hours. There is not the slightest reason to
disturb anything. Unless I am greatly mistaken, Van Sneck will lay his
had upon the ring for us without so much as the sacrifice of a blossom."

"I don't fancy so," Van Sneck replied. "I can't remember."

"Well, you are going to," Bell said, cheerfully. "Did you ever hear of
artificial memory?"

"The sort of thing you get in law courts and political speeches?" David
suggested. "All the same, if you have some patent way of getting at the
facts I shall be only too glad to spare my poor flowers. Their training
has been a labour of love with me."

Bell smoked on quietly for some time. He toyed with the red blossoms
which had so stimulated Van Sneck's recollection, then tossed a spray
over to Van Sneck and suggested that the latter should put it in his
button-hole.

"