chair. "This has been a pretty strenuous night, Lester."

"Yes; and it isn't over yet. I wonder what the man with the snake is
doing?"

"Still staring into the crystal, no doubt. Do you want to go and see?"

"No," I said decidedly, "I don't. Godfrey," I added, "doesn't the
absence of servants seem strange to you?"

"Very strange. But, I dare say, we'll find them around
somewhere--though they seem to be sound sleepers! We didn't look
through the whole house, you know. I'm not going to, either; I'm going
to let the police do that. They ought to be here pretty soon. I told
Simmonds to bring two or three men with him."

I glanced at the huddled body of the murdered man. With all the
night's excitements and surprises, we had not even touched upon that
mystery. Not a single gleam of light had been shed upon it, and yet it
was the centre about which all these other strange occurrences
revolved. Whose hand was it had thrown that cord about the throat and
drawn it tight? What motive lay behind? Fearsome and compelling must
the motive be to drive a man to such a crime! Would Simmonds be able
to divine that motive, to build the case up bit by bit until the
murderer was found? Would Godfrey?

I turned my head to look at him. He was lying back in his chair, his
eyes closed, apparently lost in thought, and for long minutes there
was no movement in the room.