e I had no
business in the place at all. But no one paid any attention to me. It
was yet pretty dark here, for there were no candles; so I waited,
leaning against the wall at the head of the stairs.

Then the voices grew louder; and the crowd opened out a little to let
someone through; and there came, walking very quickly, and talking
together, my Lord Craven leaning on the arm of my Lord Ailesbury. My
Lord Craven--near ninety years old at this time--was in his full-dress
as colonel of the foot-guards, for he had attended a few minutes before
to receive from His Majesty the pass-word of the day: and my Lord
Ailesbury was but half dressed with his points hanging loose; for he had
been all undressed just now, when the King had been taken ill.

After they had passed by me I stood again to wait; but, almost
immediately, across the further end of the lobby I saw Mr. Chiffinch
pass swiftly from a door on the left to a door on the right. At that
sight I determined to wait no longer: for there was but one thought in
my mind, all this while.

I said nothing, but I came down the stairs and laid my hand on the
shoulder of a physician (I think he was), who stood in front of me, and
pushed him aside, as if I had a right to be there; and so I went through
them very quickly, and into the room where I had seen Mr. Chiffinch go.
The door was ajar: I pushed it open and went in.

It was a pretty small room, and there were no beds in it; it had presses
round the walls: a coal fire burned in the hearth in a brazier, and a
round table was in the midst, lit by a single candle, and near the
candle stood a heap of surgical instruments and a roll of bandages.
(This was the room, I learned later, next to the Royal Bedchamber, where
the surgeons had attended half an hour ago to dress the King's heel.)
There were three persons in the room beyond the table, talking very
earnestly together. Two of them I did not know; but the third was Mr.
Chiffinch. They all three turned when I came in, and stared at me.

"Why--" began the page--"Mr. Mallock, what do you--"

He came towards me with an air of impatience.

"Mr. Chiffinch," said I, in a low voice--"how is His Majesty. I--"

The further door which stood at the head of three or four steps leading
up to it opened sharply, and the page whisked round to see what it was.
A face looked out, very peaked-looking and white, and nodded briskly at
the bandages and the instruments; the two other men darted