But when the door was opened she had not strength to speak. She fainted from exhaustion as soon as she sat down in the kitchen. Mr. Drever gave her food, which revived her; but it was not until she had had several hours' sleep that she could recount even a part of what had occurred on the moor. But the schoolmaster understood this much, that Colin Lothian was lying dead near to Mary Firth's cottage, and, leaving the girl for a few minutes, he ran to Dr. Linklater's and sent him to make further discoveries. Such was the substance of Thora's evidence, though I have given it in fuller detail than as she delivered it to Mr. Duke. When she had been cross-questioned by Bailie Thomson the inquiry was closed by Mr. Duke, and the case remitted to a higher court. Tom Kinlay was thereupon taken by Macfarlane to his prison cell to await the delivery of the formal charge of murder. I was taking up my gun and preparing to leave when Andrew Drever requested me to remain in order to be present at the consideration of a further question that had arisen out of his investigations of the case. Mr. Duke remained in his chair, talking with Thora, while Bailie Thomson and Mr. Fox went out. Presently, however, I was somewhat surprised to see Captain Flett enter, with Peter Brown; and I could only conjecture that there was now to be some explanation as to the meaning of the two boxes being on the table--the box out of the cave and the little chest from the Pilgrim. But what was said and done at this supplementary inquiry may well be reserved for another chapter. Chapter XL. Ephraim Quendale. "Tom Kinlay is no brother of yours, Thora; nor Carver your father!" These words were ringing in my ears. What did they mean? I was questioning in my own mind what Colin could have meant when Mr. Drever asked us all to sit at the table. He had some statement to make. Turning to Mr. Duke he said: "In the remarkable evidence just given by Thora--I will not now call her Thora Kinlay--you who heard it were no doubt astonished at the revelation made to her by Colin Lothian in his dying moments." "Yes, dominie," said Mr. Duke. "I have just been asking Thora what Colin could have meant. Can you throw any light on the matter yourself?" "I believe we can throw some light on it, bailie, and perhaps you can help me to make the matter clear." The schoolmaster stood with his hand resting on the chest that had been brought from the cave. "First of all," said he, "I will ask if you remember Carver Kinlay's arrival in the Mainland?" "Right well do I remember it," said Mr. Duke. "He was cast ashore in the wreck of a Danish barque about a dozen years ago, or more. What was the ship's name, now?" "The Undine?" suggested Mr. Drever. "Ay, that's just it, the Undine. And Sandy Ericson found Carver in some hole in the cliff two or three days after the wreck."