“Are you not sure.” “I shall be sure if you can bring me face to face with that boy.” “Jotty?” cried Latimer, taking his pipe from his mouth. “I always said that the brat knew a lot.” “Yes. He knows a lot, and so do I,” answered Bakche smiling dryly. “However you must give me a night to think over matters. To-morrow I shall call at The Monastery early in the day, and if we can come to an arrangement you shall have your minds set at rest. Always,” ended the Indian taking off his cap, “always presuming that the boy is confronted with me.” “Do you hint that Jotty is guilty?” asked Fuller suddenly. Bakche, who was turning away, looked back with an enigmatic smile. “A weak arm can drive a stiletto into a sleeping man, as easily as can a strong one, sir,” and, still smiling, he walked off rapidly in the direction of Lewes, evidently objecting to further questions. “By heaven!” muttered Alan aghast, “he knows the truth.” “It seems so,” observed Dick with a thoughtful frown, “don’t go after him, Alan. He will tell us all to-morrow, and you needn’t be afraid of his running away, since his revelations mean that he gets a share of the gems.” “But we have to confront him with Jotty; and where is the boy?” Dick shrugged his shoulders as they resumed their walk to Belstone. “Who knows? But even if he doesn’t appear Bakche won’t keep silent, for in that case he will lose his reward. Hum! I wonder if Jotty—as he infers—murdered Grison?” “Well, Jotty is a greedy little beast, and admired the peacock. As he was a protégé of Grison and could run in and out of his room at will, it might be that he stole in when the man was sleeping and killed him. Bakche seems to hint at that. And then,” added Fuller, warming to his theme, “remember how Miss Grison took charge of the lad. Perhaps he gave her the peacock and the stiletto, which she took down to The Monastery to implicate Sorley and revenge herself on him.” “She denied plainly enough that she took the bird to Belstone,” replied Latimer, shaking his head, “and if Jotty had the peacock she would have guessed that he had murdered her brother. Seeing how she loved the man she would not have condoned Jotty’s crime in any way. No, Alan, I don’t agree with your theory. Better wait and hear what Bakche has to say and then we can be certain. But the stiletto? I thought that was missing?” “From Mother Slaig’s house,” said Alan quickly, “but Marie and I found it in the secret cupboard where Sorley keeps his own private collection of jewels. Either he is guilty, and concealed it there, or Jotty—who came to warn him—did so; or Miss Grison did in some way manage to get the weapon and hide it. But then her possession of it would certainly entail her knowing the truth, and she would not—as you said before—spare the murderer of the brother whom she loved so dearly.”