one its work. Then he withdrew it. A moment later he uttered a
cry.

Across the sheet in neat brown printing ran the words: WITH THE
COMPLIMENTS OF MR. BROWN.

CHAPTER XXI. TOMMY MAKES A DISCOVERY

FOR a moment or two they stood staring at each other stupidly, dazed
with the shock. Somehow, inexplicably, Mr. Brown had forestalled them.
Tommy accepted defeat quietly. Not so Julius.

"How in tarnation did he get ahead of us? That's what beats me!" he
ended up.

Tommy shook his head, and said dully:

"It accounts for the stitches being new. We might have guessed...."

"Never mind the darned stitches. How did he get ahead of us? We hustled
all we knew. It's downright impossible for anyone to get here quicker
than we did. And, anyway, how did he know? Do you reckon there was a
dictaphone in Jane's room? I guess there must have been."

But Tommy's common sense pointed out objections.

"No one could have known beforehand that she was going to be in that
house--much less that particular room."

"That's so," admitted Julius. "Then one of the nurses was a crook and
listened at the door. How's that?"

"I don't see that it matters anyway," said Tommy wearily. "He may have
found out some months ago, and removed the papers, then----No, by Jove,
that won't wash! They'd have been published at once."

"Sure thing they would! No, some one's got ahead of us to-day by an hour
or so. But how they did it gets my goat."

"I wish that chap Peel Edgerton had been with us," said Tommy
thoughtfully.

"Why?" Julius stared. "The mischief was done when we came."

"Yes----" Tommy hesitated. He could not explain his own feeling--the
illogical idea that the K.C.'s presence would somehow have averted the
catastrophe. He reverted to his former point of view. "It's no good
arguing about how it was done. The game's up. We've failed. There's only
one thing for me to do."

"What's that?"

"Get back to London as soon as possible. Mr. Carter must be warned. It's
only a matter of hours now before the blow falls. But, at any rate, he
ought to know the worst."

The duty was an unpleasant one, but Tommy had no intention of shirking
it. He must report his failure to Mr. Carter. After that his work was
done. He took the midnight mail to London. Julius elected to stay the
night at Holyhead.

Half an hour after arrival, haggard and pale, Tommy stood before his
chief.

"I've come to report, sir. I've failed--failed badly."

Mr. Carter e