age, ordered him out of
the room instantly, and forbade his stepmother to lend or give him
one farthing either then or at any time thereafter. 'There will be
no gambler's I. O. U.'s taken up for you by anybody in this house,'
I flung at him. 'If you are in debt, get out of it in your own way
and as best you can!'

"I think that even then I was conscious of a sense of gratification
at the way he took that ultimatum, Mr. Cleek, for instead of whining
like a whipped cur, he pulled himself up straight and strong,
clicked his heels together, and said very quietly, 'All right, sir,
I'll take you at your word. Thank you for past favours. Good-bye!'
and then walked out of the room. That was the last I have seen or
heard of him."

"H'm! Leave the house, did he?"

"Yes--but not then. That was a few minutes before seven. A servant
saw him on the top landing coming out of his own room with something
wrapped up in a parcel, after that. And another, who was busy
cleaning up in the lower hall, saw him come down and go out at
ten minutes past."

"And in the meantime, the Ladder of Light had vanished?"

"Yes. After Henry had left the boudoir I had a few minutes' heated
argument with Lady Leake; then, remembering the work I had in hand,
I left the necklace in her charge and hurried away to rig up a
temporary workshop. It was about twenty minutes past seven when I
finished doing that, and went back to Lady Leake's boudoir to get the
jewel. I found her in a state of the wildest excitement, flying
about the room like an insane woman and searching everywhere. The
necklace was gone! Only for one single minute of time had it been
out of her sight, yet in that minute it had vanished, utterly and
completely, and there was not a trace of it to be found anywhere."

"H'm! Just so! Case gone, too, Sir Mawson?"

"No! That was still there, lying on her dressing-table, but it was
empty."

"I see. So, then, it could not have been that that was wrapped up
in the parcel your son was seen carrying. Anybody in that room after
Sir Mawson left you, your ladyship?"

"Not a living soul, Mr. Cleek."

"Could no one have stolen it without your knowledge?"

"That would be impossible. I locked the door the instant Sir Mawson
left me."

"Ah, then, of course! Another question, please. Sir Mawson has spoken
of there being 'one single minute' when the necklace was not directly
under your eyes. When was that?"

"When I left the room, Mr. Cleek."

"Oh