ow Blatchford had entered and been
shot.

The blind man, still kneeling, heard the ordering and organizing of
others for the pursuit; now women servants from the other part of the
house were taking charge of affairs in the room. He heard Avery
questioning them; none of the servants had had part in the fight in the
room; there had been no signal heard, Santoine was told, upon any of
the bells which he had tried to ring from his room. Eaton was the only
person from the house who was missing. Harriet had gone for a moment;
the blind man called her back and demanded that she stay beside him; he
had not yet moved from Blatchford's body. His daughter returned; her
hand on his shoulder was trembling and cold--he could feel it cold
through the linen of his pajama jacket.

"Father, you must go back to bed!" she commanded uselessly. He would
not stir yet. A servant, at her call, brought a robe which she put
over him, and she drew slippers on his feet.

"They came, at least some of them came,"--Santoine had risen, fighting
down his grief over his cousin's death; he stood holding the robe about
him--"for what was in your safe, Harriet."

"I know; I saw it open."

"What is gone?" Santoine demanded.

He heard her picking up the contents of the safe from the floor and
carrying them to the table and examining them; he was conscious that,
having done this, she stood staring about the room as though to see
whether anything had escaped her search.

"What is gone?" Santoine repeated.

"Why--nearly all the formal papers seem to be gone; lists and
agreements relating to a dozen different things."

"None of the correspondence?"

"No; that all seems to be here."

Santoine was breathing quickly; the trust for which he had been ready
to die--for which Blatchford had died--seemed safe; but recognition of
this only emphasized and deepened his perplexity as to what the meaning
had been of the struggle which an instant before had been going on
around him.

"We don't know whether he got it, then, or not!" It was Avery's voice
which broke in upon him; Santoine merely listened.

"He? Who?" He heard his daughter's challenge.

"Why, Eaton. It is plain enough what happened here, isn't it?" Avery
answered. "He came here to this room for what he was after--for what
he has been after from the first--whatever that may have been! He came
prepared to force the safe and get it! But he was surprised--"

"By whom?" the blind man as