"I thought so. And your story of seeing Frith and Frith was a lie." "Yes! I did not want you to know." "Not only that, but you wished to make use of me. I was to prove your alibi, Eh? You chose this country for our walking tour on purpose?" "I planned the whole thing," said Joyce shamelessly and with something of pleasure in his own cleverness. "You think yourself clever Herrick, but I, whom you have always despised, have made a tool of you." "Up to a point you have no doubt. But there is a proverb about playing with edged tools, you seem to have forgotten. As to your saying that I despise you I never did so, until I found out--never mind how--that you had told me a lie about going to London from Southberry." "It was my own business." "And I was to be your tool, as you have just said. Go on." Joyce thought for a moment. "As I have done nothing so very wrong," he said, "there is no reason why I should not tell you everything from the beginning. I suppose you will admit that." "No reason at all. Go on." "Very good. Well then until my mother died I had no idea of her position--nor," added Joyce, "have I any very clear idea now. She left a paper behind her which explained much, but not all. I will show it to you when you come up to London." "Thank you; I will remind you of that promise." Robin scowled and continued. "My mother said that between a certain Colonel Carr and herself there existed a business arrangement that she should receive five hundred a year for her life. The arrangement was made by my dead father for services rendered to Colonel Carr." "What were those services?" "That is one of the things I do not know. The paper said nothing about them. The five hundred a year was to be paid to my mother and when she died it was to stop. So you see that in place of having an income as I thought I was left a pauper. My mother had saved some money--about three hundred pounds. I am living on that now. I was in despair, and I went to the solicitors who pay the annuity to ask if Colonel Carr would continue it. They wrote to the Colonel and he refused. "I know that," said Herrick smoothly, "Frith told me." "You seem to have meddled a good deal in my business," sneered Joyce. "Well, I was again in despair, as I saw nothing before me but a life of hard work. I read over the paper again. My mother said in it that Carr was a dangerous man, but that he had enemies, who threatened to kill him. She advised me to see him, but to take all precautions against my visit being known to anyone. "Why?" asked Dr. Jim, "I see no reason." "Nor did I," responded Robin with a shrug; he was now quite himself again and seemed to enjoy the telling of the story. "She hinted however that if Colonel Carr ever died by violence--and she was sure he would--I might be accused of the crime if I went to see him. She said that it was dangerous to be in his company for that reason." "It seems to me a very ridiculous reason."