his
manacled hands, then turned away in response to an imperative gesture
from Queensmead. Colwyn stood where he was for a moment, watching them,
then turned to enter the inn. As he did so, his eyes fell upon the white
face of Peggy, framed in the gathering gloom of the passage, staring
with frightened eyes at the retreating forms of the village constable
and his prisoner. She slipped out of the door and took a few hurried
steps in their direction. But when she reached the strip of green which
bordered the side of the inn she stopped with a despairing gesture, as
though realising the futility of her effort, and turned to retrace her
steps. Colwyn advanced rapidly towards her.

"I want to speak to you," he said curtly.

She stood still, but there was a prescient flash in her eyes as she
looked at him.

"You were in the dead man's room last night," he said. "What were you
doing there?"

"I do not know that it is any business of yours," she replied, in a low
tone.

"I do not think you had better adopt that attitude," he said quietly.
"You know you had no right to go into that room. I do not wish to
threaten you, but you had better tell me the truth."

She stood silent for a moment, as though weighing his words. Then she
said:

"I will tell you why I went there, not because I am afraid of anything
you can do, but because I am not afraid of the truth. I went there
because of a promise I made to Mr. Glenthorpe. He was very kind and good
to me--when he was alive. Only two days before he met his death he asked
me, if anything happened to him at any time, to go to his bedroom and
remove a packet I would find in a little secret drawer in his writing
table, and destroy it without opening it. He showed me where the packet
was, and how to open the drawer. After he was dead I thought of my
promise, and tried several times to slip into the room and get the
packet, but there was always somebody about. So I went in last night,
after everybody was in bed, because I thought the police might find the
packet in searching his desk, and I should have been very unhappy if I
had not been able to keep my promise."

"How did you get into the room? The door was locked, and Superintendent
Galloway had the key."

"He left it on the mantelpiece downstairs. I saw it there earlier in the
evening, and when he was out of the room I slipped in and took it, and
put the key of my own room in its place. I replaced it next morning."

"What did y