right directly."

"Aren't you going to give him anything?" Phipps asked, moving his head
towards Dredlinton.

"He is asleep," Wingate answered. "Better leave him alone until breakfast
is ready."

The telephone bell tinkled. Wingate brought back the instrument and held
out a receiver each to Phipps and his nephew.

"Harrison speaking. Your messages have all gone through on the trunk
lines, sir. The sales have begun already, and the whole market is in a
state of collapse. If you are coming down, I should advise you, sir, to
come in by the back entrance. There'll be a riot here when the news
gets about."

Wingate removed the telephone once more.

"And now," he suggested, "you would like a wash, perhaps? Or first we'd
better wake Dredlinton."

He leaned over and touched the crouching form upon the shoulder. There
was no response.

"Dredlinton," he said firmly, "wake up. Your vigil is over."

Again there was no response. Wingate leaned over and lifted him up bodily
by both shoulders. Rees went off into a fit of idiotic laughter. Phipps
stretched out his hands before his eyes. It was a terrible sight upon
which they looked,--Dredlinton's face like a piece of marble, white to
the lips, the eyes open and staring, the unmistakable finger of Death
written across it.

"He's gone!" Rees choked. "He's gone!"

Phipps suddenly found vigour once more in his arm. He struck the table.
There was a note of triumph in his brazen tone.

"My God, Wingate," he cried, "you've killed him! You'll swing for this
job, after all!"

There followed a few moments of tense and awestruck silence. Then an
evil smile parted Rees' lips, and he looked at Wingate with triumphant
malice.

"This is murder!" he exclaimed.

"So your excellent uncle has already intimated," Wingate replied. "I am
sorry that it has happened, of course. As for the consequences, however,
I do not fear them."

He crossed the room and rang the bell. Once more a servant in plain
clothes made his appearance with phenomenal quickness.

"Send to her ladyship's room," Wingate directed, "and enquire the name
and address of Lord Dredlinton's doctor. Let him be fetched here at once.
Tell two of the others to come down. Lord Dredlinton must be carried into
his bedroom."

The man had scarcely left the room before the door was opened again and
Grant himself appeared. This time he closed the door behind him and came
a little way towards Wingate.

"Inspector Shields is her