d her head knowingly. "Why, I've got enough facts from my own
department to divorce half the officers on the staff," she added.

The work of shadowing Mr. Naylor was not without its humours.
Sometimes Department Z. was led away on false scents. On one occasion
a week was spent in tracking a venerable-looking old gentleman, he
turned out to be a quite respectable pensioned civil servant, who, out
of the kindness of his own heart, had passed the time of day with Mr.
Naylor.

The plan decided upon by Colonel Walton and Malcolm Sage was carefully
to watch all Mr. Naylor's associates and, at a given time, make a clean
sweep of the lot. To achieve this effect a zero hour was to be
established on a certain day. Each was to be arrested as soon after
that time as it was possible. This was mainly due to Malcolm Sage's
suspicion that some scheme of warning existed between the various
members of the combination, whereby any danger threatening one was
quickly notified to all the others.

"In all probability we shall get a few harmless birds into the net,"
Malcolm Sage had remarked. "Probably the sister of an M.P., or the
head of a department in one of the new Ministries; but that can't be
helped."

"Still I should prefer that it didn't happen," Colonel Walton had said
drily. "You know the Skipper hates questions in the House."

"By the way," said Malcolm Sage to Colonel Walton one day, "Thompson
sent in an interesting report this morning."

"Naylor?" queried Colonel Walton.

Malcolm Sage nodded.

"He's having a sort of small greenhouse arrangement fitted in the
window of the front-room of the basement. It may be for flowers or for
salad."

"Or----?" interrogated Colonel Walton.

Malcolm Sage merely shrugged his shoulders as he proceeded to dig the
ashes out of his pipe.

The work of Department Z. continued quietly and unostentatiously. John
Dene was never permitted out of sight, except when in some private
place. This meant the constant changing of those responsible for
keeping him under observation.

The necessity of this was not more evident to Department Z. than to
John Dene himself. In spite of his scornful manner, he was not lacking
in caution, as soon became obvious to Malcolm Sage. At the hotel he
was careful, taking neither food nor drink in his room. He never dined
two consecutive nights at the same restaurant, and he consistently
refused all overtures from strangers.

It soon became evident t