awoke in the morning in a very different frame of mind from that of the morning before. My heart was full of pride that Isobel loved me and was mine. My brain was full of schemes and plans, and my whole being tingled gloriously with a sense of high adventure.
"If youth but knew . . ."
When David brought my hot water, with his inevitable, "Half-past seven, sir, and a fine morning" (when the rain stops, or the fog clears, as the case might be), I told him I should give him a letter, after breakfast, which he was to give privately to Miss Rivers at the first convenient opportunity after eleven o'clock.
I thought it better to give it to David than to a maid. He had obeyed instructions in the case of Michael's letter to Digby, and Digby's letter to me, and a maid would be more likely to chatter in the servants' hall.
I did not think that there was the slightest suspicion in that quarter, and, as Aunt Patricia had said, there was no reason why there should be any, provided the mystery of the "Blue Water" was solved without the aid of the police.
I could have posted my letter to her of course, but that would have involved delay, and an anxious night for her. It would also mean a post-mark, and I thought it would be better for her to be able to say, with perfect truth, that she had not the vaguest idea as to where I had gone.
When I had dressed, I put my brushes and shaving-tackle into an attaché-case, and crammed in a shirt, collars, and socks, and then went down to the smoking-room, and, after some unsatisfactory efforts, wrote to Isobel:
"My darling beautiful Sweetheart, I had a letter from Digby last night. He has bolted because he thinks that Michael has shouldered the blame and disgrace of this theft in order to protect the innocent and shield the guilty person (who must appear to him to be Claudia, Digby, or myself, as it is not you nor Gussie). Digby told me that it was not he, and he refuses to believe that it is Michael. I don't think he suspects me either. Now, you'll be the first to agree that I can't sit at home and let them do this, believing them to be innocent. And if either of them were guilty, I'd want, all the more, to do anything I could to help. Were it not for leaving you, for a little while, just when I have found you, I should be rather enjoying it, I am afraid. Anyhow, I should have had to leave you in a little while, when I went up to Oxford again, and that would have been an eight weeks' separation. As it is, we are only going to be parted until this silly wretched business is cleared up. I expect the thief will return the thing anonymously as soon as he or she finds that we three are all pretending we did it, and that we will not resume our ordinary lives until restitution is made. You know that I didn't do it, and I know that you didn't, and that's all that really matters; but you wouldn't have me hold back when the Captain and Lieutenant of the Band are out to divert suspicion from the innocent and to shame the guilty into returning Aunt's property! I'll send you an address later on, so that you can tell me what happens--but, just at first, I want you to have no idea where I am, and to say so. You'd despise me, really, in your heart, if I stayed at home, though I know you'll miss me and want me back. I shall come, of course, the moment you let me know that the affair is cleared up. Meanwhile, no ass of a detective will be suspecting you or Claudia, or poor innocent Gussie, since obviously one of the absconding three (or all of them) must be the thief. Aunt will go to the police about it of course, and they will soon be on our track, and trouble no one at Brandon Abbas. And now, darling Isobel, darling Faithful Hound, I am not going to try to tell you how much I love you--I am going to do it before you get this. But everything is different since last night. The world is a perfectly glorious place, and life is a perfectly glorious thing. Nothing matters, because Isobel loves me and I love Isobel--for ever and ever. I want to sing all the time, and to tell everybody. Isn't love absolutely WONDERFUL? Always and always, Your devoted, adoring, grateful Sweetheart."
This honest, if boyish, effusion I gave to David, and repeated my instructions.
He contrived to keep his face correctly expressionless, though he must have wondered how many more of us were going to give him epistles to be privately delivered after their departure to other members of the household.
Leaving the smoking-room, I met Burdon in the corridor.
"Can you tell me where Mr. Michael is, sir?" he asked. "Her ladyship wishes to see him."
"No, I can't, Burdon," I replied, "for the excellent reason that I don't know."
"Mr. Digby's bed have not been slep' in either, sir," he went on. "I did not know the gentlemen were going away. . . . Nothing packed nor nothing."
"They didn't tell me they were going, Burdon," I said, putting on an owlish look of wonder and speculation. "They're off on some jaunt or other, I suppose. . . . I hope they ask me to join them."
"Racing, p'r'aps, sir?" suggested Burdon sadly.
"Shocking," said I, and left him, looking waggish to the best of my ability. . . .
There were only the four of us at breakfast again.
Isobel's face lit up radiantly as our glances met, and we telegraphed our love to each other.
"Anyone heard how the Chaplain is?" asked Claudia.
"I went to see him last night," replied Isobel, "but the nurse said he was asleep."
"Nurse?" asked Augustus.
"Yes," said Isobel. "Dr. Warrender thought he ought to have a night-nurse, and Aunt Patricia telegraphed for one. He's going to get up to-day though, the nurse told me."
"Where's Digby?" asked Augustus.
"Why?" I said elliptically.
"Burdon asked me if I'd seen him, and said he wasn't in last night."
"I know no more than you do where he is," I honestly assured him.
"Funny--isn't it?" he sneered.
"Most humorous," I agreed.
"Perhaps Aunt will think so," countered Augustus unpleasantly. . . . "First Michael and then Digby, after what she said about not leaving the house!"
"Ought to have consulted you first, Gussie," said Claudia.
"Looks as though they didn't want to consult the police, if you ask me," he snarled.
"We didn't ask you, Gussie," said Isobel, and so the miserable meal dragged through.
Towards the end of it, Burdon came in.
"Her ladyship wishes to see Mr. Digby," he said to the circumambient air.
"Want a bit of doing, I should say," remarked Augustus, with a snigger.
"He's not here, Burdon," said I, looking under the table.
"No, sir," replied Burdon gravely, and departed.
"You next, my lad," Augustus stated, eyeing me severely. "I wonder if the detectives have come."
Burdon returned.
"Her ladyship would like to see you in her boudoir, after breakfast, sir," said he to me.
"Told you so," remarked Augustus, as the door closed behind the butler.
"Where do you think the others
