u know, this beats me! To think of your guessing
that!" he said. "As a matter of fact, that's precisely what they did do,
Mr. Cleek. But as they couldn't arrive at any conclusion nor trace a
probable cause of its origin they were more in the dark than ever.
Selwin, the local practitioner, was for putting it down as a case of
apoplexy on the strength of that small blood-clot, but as there was an
entire absence of every other symptom of apoplectic conditions the other
doctors scouted the suggestion as preposterous--pointed out the
generally healthy state of the brain and of the heart, lungs, arterial
walls, _et cetera_, as utterly refuting such a theory--and in the end
the verdict on the son was the verdict given on the mother: 'Death from
unknown causes'; and he was buried as she had been buried, with the
secret of the murder undiscovered."

"And then what, Captain?"

"What I have already told you, Mr. Cleek. Nothing under God's heaven
would or could persuade Mr. Harmstead to let his nieces and their two
surviving brothers remain another hour in that house of disaster. He
removed them from it instantly--fled the very neighbourhood, hired a
house down here--at Dalehampton; a dozen miles or so on the other side
of the Tor, yonder--and carried them there to live. The family now
consisted of Miriam and Flora, the two girls, Paul, a boy of
thirteen--old Mr. Harmstead's special pride and pet--and Ronald, a
little chap of eleven. In this new home they hoped and prayed to be free
from the horrible visitant who had made the memory of the old one a
nightmare to them, but--they couldn't forget, Mr. Cleek, what the Tenth
of each month had taken from them, and grew sick with dread at the
steady approach of the Tenth of this one."

"And as this is the Twelfth," said Cleek, "the day before yesterday
_was_ the Tenth. Did anything happen?"

"Yes," replied the Captain, his voice dropping until it was little more
than a whisper. "I tried to cheer them; Miss Lorne tried to cheer them.
We sat with them, tried to make them think that our presence there would
act as a shield and a guard--and tried to think so ourselves. But old
Mr. Harmstead took even stronger measures. 'Nothing shall touch
Paul--nothing that lives and breathes,' he said, desperately. 'I'll take
him into my room; I'll sit up with him in my arms all night!'"

"And did so?"

"Yes. At twelve o'clock, Miss Lorne, Miss Comstock, and I went in to
say good-night to him. He was