before I again set out on my quest. The brougham had been
stopped just near a bye-road, and as the footman had assured me that the
Pirate had taken this path when he departed, I thought I would follow. I
could see for myself that a motor-car had passed that way, for the
thunderstorm of the previous day had left the roads heavy in places, and
the marks of his tyres were plainly visible.

I had followed the road for about a couple of miles further when I came
once more upon some of the Pirate's victims. These, too, were returning
from the same function at which the old lady had been a guest, when they
fell into the clutches of the Pirate. In this case my assistance was not
required, for the two young ladies of the party had recovered
sufficiently from their fright to have already set at liberty their male
companion and the coachman. They told me of their experiences, and
after I had heard them, I thought that Forrest's idea that the Pirate
was a madman more likely than I had done previously.

When stopped by the Pirate, the husband of one of the ladies had shown
fight until he had been felled by a blow from the butt end of a
revolver. The coachman had discreetly made no resistance. Then, after
securing the jewels the women wore, the Pirate had displayed a freakish
humour quite new to his character. He had insisted upon the two women
dancing for his amusement in the road, threatening to shoot the husband
if they did not comply with his request. They assured me that he had sat
chuckling with laughter, and urging them on with all sorts of wild
threats, until they fell from exhaustion. They were splashed with mud
from head to foot, and their dainty frocks presented a sorry sight. In
addition they told me that they could barely stand, for their feet were
cut to pieces, since, at the first steps of the weird dance, their
slippers had stuck in the mud, and they were given no opportunity to
stop and recover them.

I did not wait to hear more than the barest outline of the story, for I
learned that he had left them not more than ten minutes before my
arrival on the scene, and with the heavy roads, I thought there was at
least a chance of some lucky accident bringing me face to face with my
quarry.

CHAPTER XIX

A HOT SCENT

I RAN on through the night, but I could not make any great progress. I
was now involved in a maze of Essex bye-roads, totally unknown to me,
and every few minutes I was compelled to dismount, an