there. It was drawing near to eleven, and they had been
in those rooms well over three hours, when a slight sound came at
Triffitt's window and Davidge put his head in, to be presently followed
by Milsey. Milsey looked as innocent as ever, but it seemed to Triffitt
that Davidge looked grave.

"Well?" said Triffitt. "Any luck?"

Davidge drew the curtains over the balcony window before he turned and
answered this question.

"Mr. Triffitt," he said, when at last he faced round, "you'll have to
put us up for the night. After what I've found, I'm not going to lose
sight, or get out of touch with this man. Now listen, and I'll tell you,
at any rate, something. Tomorrow morning at ten o'clock there's to be a
sort of informal inquiry at Mr. Halfpenny's office into the matter of a
will of the date of Jacob Herapath's--all the parties concerned are
going to meet there, and I know that this man Burchill is to be present.
I don't propose to lose sight of him after he returns here tonight
until he goes to that office--what happens after he's once there, you
shall see. So Milsey and I'll just have to trouble you to let me stop
here for the night. You can go to your bed, of course--we'll sit up.
I'll send Milsey out to buy a bit of supper for us--I dare say he'll
find something open close by."

"No need," Triffitt hastened to say. "I've a cold meat pie, uncut, and
plenty of bread, and cheese. And there's bottled ale, and whisky, and
I'll get you some supper ready at once. So"--he went on, as he began to
bustle about--"you did find--something?"

Davidge rubbed his hands and winked first at Milsey and then at
Triffitt.

"Wait till tomorrow!" he said. "There'll be strange news for you
newspaper gentlemen before tomorrow night."

CHAPTER XXII

YEA AND NAY

Mr. Halfpenny, face to face with the fact that Barthorpe Herapath meant
mischief about the will, put on his thinking-cap and gave himself up to
a deep and serious consideration of the matter. He thought things over
as he journeyed home to his house in the country; he spent an evening in
further thought; he was still thinking when he went up to town next
morning. The result of his cogitations was that after giving certain
instructions in his office as to the next steps to be taken towards duly
establishing Jacob Herapath's will, he went round to Barthorpe
Herapath's office and asked to see him.

Barthorpe himself came out of his private room and showed some
politene