me."

"You should have heard," said Roy, sternly. "What were you watching
there?"

"That's what I don't know, sir. I see a light out yonder somewheres
about where them old stones is on the hill. And then I thought I heard
talking, but that's quarter of an hour ago."

Both Roy and his companion had a good long look, but there was nothing
to see or hear; and after admonishing the man to keep an eye upon the
place, they descended and visited the sentries on the north-east and
south-east towers, to find them well upon the _qui vive_.

After this they descended, and Ben led the way to the armoury, where he
set the lantern on the table, took a spare candle from a box, and a
bunch of keys from a drawer.

"May mean nothing, Master Roy; but I don't understand what light there
could be up nigh the old chapel ruins, nor who could be talking there at
this time of night."

"Not likely to be anything wrong, Ben, because if they had been enemies,
they would not have shown a light."

"Signal perhaps, sir."

"Well, they wouldn't have talked aloud."

"Don't suppose they did, sir. Sound runs in a still, dark night like
this. Well, anyways it seems to me as it's quite time we had a good
look round to see if there's a hole anywhere in the bottom of the pot,
so if you're ready, so am I. Only say the word."

"Forward!" cried Roy; and, going first with the lantern, Ben led the way
along the corridor to the head of a flight of stone steps, down which
they went to the underground passage, which with groined roof ran right
along all four sides of the castle. The dark place seemed full of
whispering echoes, as they went on past door after door leading into
cellar and dungeon, all now turned into stores; for the great mass of
provender brought in by Farmer Raynes's wagons had here been carefully
packed away, the contents of each place being signified by a white,
neatly painted number, duly recorded in a book where the account of what
number so-and-so indicated was carefully written in Master Pawson's best
hand, since he had eagerly undertaken the duties of clerk.

At each corner of the castle basement, the passage expanded into a
circular crypt with a huge stone pillar, many feet in diameter, in the
middle, from which radiated massive arches to rest on eight smaller
pillars. This radial series of arches supported one of the towers, and,
after passing the one to the north-east, Ben led on with his lantern
along the passage runn