The girl presumably thought, for she was silent for some moments, but her cogitations were unproductive. She shook her head. “Did you stay in the house while she was away?” “No. I came here and cook went home.” This was better. The attention of a number of people had been drawn to the date, and some one of them should surely be able to fix it. “On what day of the week did you go back?” French prompted. The girl considered this. “It was a Thursday,” she said at last. “I remember that now, because Thursday is my night out, and I remembered thinking that that week I shouldn’t get it.” French was delighted with the reply. It was on a Thursday night, seven weeks earlier, that Mrs. X had driven from the Savoy to Victoria, left her boxes there, and vanished. The thing was working in. “What time of the day did she arrive?” “In the evening.” Miss Scott answered promptly this time. “It was about half eight or a quarter to nine.” Better and better! Mrs. X left the Savoy shortly before eight, and it would take her about three-quarters of an hour to drive to Victoria, leave her trunks in the left luggage office, and get out to St. John’s Wood Road. “Now,” French went on, “if you or your sister could just remember the week that happened, I should be very much obliged.” Susan Scott sat with a heavy frown on her rather pretty features. Concentrated thought was evidently an unwonted exercise. But at last her efforts bore fruit. “I’ve got it now,” she said with something of triumph in her tone. “It was the last week of November. I remember it because my brother-in-law got his new job in the first week of December, and that was the following Monday. I heard that much about his job that I ought to know.” French had scarcely doubted that this would prove to be the date, but it was most excellent to have it fixed in so definite a manner. He felt that he was progressing in his weaving of the net round the elusive Mrs. X. “That’s very good,” he said approvingly. “Now will you tell me about Mr. Vane?” The girl sniffed. “Him?” she said scornfully. “There ain’t much to tell about him. He didn’t trouble us much with his company.” “How was that? Did they not get on? Remember we’re speaking in confidence.” “Why, I never even saw him. He didn’t turn up all the three months I was there. But I heard about him from cook. He was away all the time or next thing to it. When he did come, it was generally for two days. He would come late in the evening, so cook said, and stay for two days without ever going so much as outside the door, and then go away again in the evening.” “You mean that if he came, say, on a Monday night, he would stay until the following Wednesday night?” “Yes; or sometimes for three days, so cook said.” “What time in the evening would he come and go?” “About half-past ten he always came, and a little before eight he left.” “Do you mean that he arrived and left at the same time on each visit?” “Yes, always about the same time.”