bath in front of his house. But there
was no sign of Lord Nick--no sign of Lou. A grim fear came to Donnegan
that he might have to attack Nick in his own stronghold, for Jack Landis
might already have been taken away to the Lebrun house.

So he went straight to the colonel, and when he came close he saw that
the fat man was apparently in the grip of a chill. He had gathered a
vast blanket about his shoulders and kept drawing it tighter; beneath
his eyes, which looked down to the ground, there were violet shadows.

"I've lost," said Donnegan through his teeth. "Lord Nick has been here?"

The invalid lifted his eyes, and Donnegan saw a terrible thing--that the
nerve of the fat man had been crushed. The folds of his face quivered as
he answered huskily: "He has been here!"

"And Landis is gone?"

"No."

"Not gone? Then--"

"Nick has gone to get a horse litter. He came up just to clear the way."

"When he comes back he'll find me!"

The glance of the colonel cleared long enough to survey Donnegan slowly
from head to foot, and his amusement sent the familiar hot flush over
the face of the little man. He straightened to his full height, which,
in his high heels, was not insignificant. But the colonel was apparently
so desperate that he was willing to throw caution away.

"Compared with Lord Nick, Donnegan," he said, "you don't look half a
man--even with those heels."

And he smiled calmly at Donnegan in the manner of one who, having
escaped the lightning bolt itself, does not fear mere thunder.

"There is no fool like a fat fool," said Donnegan with childish
viciousness. "What did Lord Nick, as you call him, do to you? He's
brought out the yellow, my friend."

The colonel accepted the insult without the quiver of an eyelid.
Throughout he seemed to be looking expectantly beyond Donnegan.

"My young friend," he said, "you have been very useful to me. But I
must confess that you are no longer a tool equal to the task. I dismiss
you. I thank you cordially for your efforts. They are worthless. You see
that crowd gathering yonder? They have come to see Lord Nick prepare you
for a hole in the ground. And make no mistake: if you are here when he
returns that hole will have to be dug--unless they throw you out for the
claws of the buzzards. In the meantime, our efforts have been wasted
completely. I hadn't enough time. I had thrown the fear of sudden death
into Landis, and in another hour he would have signed away his