t speed.

In three minutes we were at Buntingford, and there we nearly ran into a
group of people who were gathered in the middle of the road. They were
discussing, as it happened, the appearance of the Pirate, who had passed
through the town twenty minutes previously. Here Forrest made another
futile attempt to persuade me to see a surgeon immediately, but I would
not listen to him. We swept onward. I could scarcely see, but I sent the
Mercedes along recklessly, stopping for nothing until we reached Ware. I
would never have driven in the manner I did in calmer moments. Forrest
told me afterwards that his journey on the Pirate's car was nothing to
it, for the car rocked so from side to side of the road that he was
never certain whether I was not steering for the hedges; while at every
bend his heart was in his mouth when he realized that the wheels were
never on the ground together.

On the outskirts of Ware we learned that the Pirate had been seen
approaching the town, but that, instead of passing through the narrow
streets, he had doubled back in the direction of Stevenage. He had kept
his twenty minutes' start and I was for following him. Forrest was of
another opinion.

"According to his usual custom, he is obviously avoiding the towns," he
argued; "and if, as I still suspect, his hiding-place is in the vicinity
of St. Albans, we shall stand some chance of cutting him off if we take
the most direct route. He cannot be badly hurt, or we should have picked
him up before this, and under any other circumstance we are not likely
to overtake him."

I saw the force of his reasoning and we flew on. We heard nothing of him
neither in Hertford nor in Hatfield.

"Our only chance is at St. Albans," remarked my companion, and once more
I put my car to top speed.

We were just about half way between the two towns when we saw the lights
of a motor ahead. I sounded the horn, or rather Forrest did, but the
vehicle made no attempt to get out of the way. We caught up to the
stranger hand over fist, and not until we were nearly touching did I
slacken speed.

As I did so the occupant of the car shouted out, "That you, Sutgrove?
Never more pleased to meet with a friend in my life."

It was Mannering.

"Seen anything of the Pirate?" shouted Forrest, by way of reply.

"Merely had the pleasure of exchanging shots with him ten minutes ago,"
was the astounding answer. "Unfortunately he appears to have got the
better of the exchan