r Temple was not observing you. You later
secured the cake of soap containing the jewel, as we know. You no doubt
intended to replace the poker in the room at the first opportunity. None
had occurred up to the time of your leaving the house, for the room was
kept locked by the police until after the inquest. You entered it once,
just before your departure, and secured the jewel, but Li Min's
presence prevented you from replacing the poker."

As the Inspector concluded, he glanced at me triumphantly, as who should
say--dispute it, if you can.

I laughed, though with little mirth. The Inspector seemed so
convincingly right, and was so hopelessly wrong. "Why don't you simply
say that I killed Ashton, and put the weapon in my dresser, and leave
Miss Temple out of it entirely?" I said. "It's equally plausible."

"Possibly so, although that would account for neither the handkerchief,
nor Miss Temple's leaving the house that morning."

"She has already accounted for the one: she can readily do so for the
other," I replied.

"That we shall see," said the Inspector, rising from his chair. "We will
go to Exeter at once, and question Miss Temple."

CHAPTER IX

MISS TEMPLE'S DISAPPEARANCE

We arrived at Exeter at some time after eight in the evening, and it was
close to nine before we made our appearance at The Oaks. Inspector Burns
and his companion had left me to myself on the trip down, and I occupied
my time with smoking and turning over in my mind the curious events of
the past forty-eight hours. I had no serious apprehension of any trouble
coming out of the matter to either Miss Temple or myself. I knew that
the Inspector's theory was a tissue of errors, although the facts, as he
stated them, did seem to fit in with his conclusions to an almost
uncanny extent. It was true I had agreed to stand by Miss Temple and
help her in her trouble. Our conversation on the night of the murder
had, I presumed, been overheard by one of the servants, from whom it had
been wormed by McQuade's men during my absence. I began to believe that
his willingness to have me accompany him to London was not entirely
disinterested. But the thought that Muriel Temple could have delivered
the blow that sent Robert Ashton to his death was preposterous. I knew
that I was prejudiced in her favor, for her lovely face had scarce been
out of my thoughts for a moment, since our first meeting. I knew that I
had come to love her, that nothing could