I privately thought--and I was right in thinking so--that Miss Destiny had been making herself disagreeable over the visit to Mootley, and perhaps had added threats. However I said nothing for the moment, as I wished Gertrude to tell her story in her own way. "Take some cake and another cup of tea," I murmured sympathetically, "then we can talk." Gertrude handed me her cup. "I can't eat or drink anything more, thank you, Mr. Vance. I want to speak seriously to you. No one can hear us, I hope?" I glanced at the door and window; both were closed. "No one can hear us," I assented, taking the chair opposite to her, "and you can depend upon my being secret about whatever you choose to tell me; you know that." "Yes." She looked straightly at me, and her royal beauty impressed me anew. "I have studied your character closely, so that I might be certain of making no mistake." "And you are satisfied?" "Perfectly." She glanced round again, then leaned back in her chair. "Listen, Mr. Vance, and don't interrupt me more than you can help, as it is difficult for me to tell my story clearly." "I am all attention," said I, leaning forward. "You know that I told you of the fifty thousand pound, which my Uncle Gabriel left me." "Yes, the fortune which is missing." Gertrude nodded. "Uncle Gabriel was a miser, and concealed his riches. My father has inherited the income and the property, but the fifty thousand pounds has been hidden away. When the will was read I learned that such a sum had been left to me, but its whereabouts could not be discovered. I searched through all my late uncle's papers without result. Then, about the end of July, I came across an old box in the attic filled with foolscap sheets covered with figures. Also there was some writing in the form of a diary, two or three loose sheets pinned together." "Have you the diary and the other papers?" "Yes; you can see them when you come to The Lodge. Meanwhile it is easier for me to tell you the contents, as the writing is extremely. crabbed. I learned that Uncle Gabriel had for years used the family income of five hundred per annum in purchasing diamonds." "Really! He could buy many valuable stones at such a price." "You forget that he had the income for forty years or thereabouts and lived like a pauper. He was always saving money and buying diamonds. At times--as the diary said--he went to London and Amsterdam and Paris and traded in stones. He turned over what he had bought, as a matter of fact, and in one way and another managed to accumulate fifty thousand pounds' worth of jewels." "Then the fortune, which is hidden, consists of diamonds?" "Exactly. In the diary Uncle Gabriel hinted that the jewels were for me, but that he mistrusted my father, and would put them safely away." "Why did he mistrust your father?" I asked, although I had a very shrewd suspicion of what the answer would be.