Zillah made a murmured remark which seemed to second her cousin's proposal, and Mr. Penniket turned to Purdie. "I understand you to be a business man," he remarked. "What do you say?" "As far as I can put things together," answered Purdie, "I fully agree that there is some extraordinary mystery round and about Mr. Multenius's death. And as the detective force at New Scotland Yard exists for the solution of such problems--why, I should certainly tell the authorities there everything that is known. Why not?" "Very good," said Mr. Penniket. "Then it will be well if you two come with me. The more information we can give to the heads of the Criminal Investigation Department, the better. We'll go there at once." In a few moments, the three men had gone, and Zillah and Mrs. Goldmark, left alone, looked at each other. "Mrs. Goldmark!" said Zillah, after a long silence. "Did you see that man, yourself, who's supposed to have dropped that platinum solitaire in your restaurant?" "Did I see him?" exclaimed Mrs. Goldmark. "Do I see you, Zillah? See him I did!--though never before, and never since! And ain't I the good memory for faces--and won't I know him again if he comes my way? Do you know what?--I ain't never forgotten a face what I've once looked at! Comes from keeping an eye on customers who looks as if they might have forgot to bring their moneys with 'em!" "Well, I hope you'll see this man again," remarked Zillah. "I'd give a lot to get all the mystery cleared up." Mrs. Goldmark observed that mysteries were not cleared up in a day, and presently went away to see that her business was being conducted properly. She was devoting herself to Zillah in very neighbourly fashion just then, but she had to keep running into the restaurant every hour or two to keep an eye on things. And during one of her absences, later in the early evening of that day, Zillah, alone in the house, answered a knock at the door, and opening it found Ayscough outside. His look betokened news, and Zillah led him into the parlour. "Alone?" asked Ayscough. "Aye, well, I've something to tell you that I want you to keep to yourself--for a bit, anyway. Those rings, you know, that the young fellow, Lauriston, says are his, and had been his mother's?" "Well?" said Zillah, faintly, and half-conscious of some coming bad news. "What of them?" "Our people," continued the detective, "have had some expert chap--jeweller, or something of that sort, examining those rings, and comparing them with the rings that are in your tray. And in that tray there are several rings which have a private mark inside them. Now, then!--those two rings which Lauriston claims are marked in exactly the same fashion!" CHAPTER SEVENTEEN WHAT THE LAMPS SHONE ON