the detective who gave himself away; but, once alive to his
presence, I swiftly marked a flash of light at one of the little
ventilation holes in the cupboard and perceived that our sleuth
stood hid within it. My plan of campaign was altered accordingly and
to great advantage. Indeed, to have slain Ben in his house, when I
should have appeared instead of the brother he expected, had been a
maladroit achievement, contrasted with the far more notable feat of
the following night.

Having conveyed the old sailor to the cave, where, on my recent run
up the coast after dropping Brendon, I had already looked in and
lighted the lamp, I landed behind him and, as his foot touched the
shore, the pole-axe fell. He was dead in an instant and five minutes
later his blood ran upon the sand. Next I dug a grave under the
shingle, at a spot destined within half an hour to be covered by the
tide. In less than twenty minutes Bendigo Redmayne reposed beneath
three feet of sand and stone and I was on my way back again to
"Crow's Nest." There I reported to Brendon that the brothers had met
and would expect me again anon. I smoked a cigarette or two,
descended to our little harbour, removed my spade from the launch to
the boathouse, took a sack and so set out again.

By the time that I had reached the cavern the waves already flowed
over old sea wolf's resting-place. I landed, half filled my sack
with stones and sand, scattered judicious drops of blood and climbed
the steps and tunnel, laying the trail that occupied official
attention to such poor purpose during the days that followed.
Having reached the plateau, I emptied my sack, casting its contents
over the cliff; I then left a good impression or two of Robert
Redmayne's shoes, which I had, of course, remembered to put on. They