"By and by, I went out into the hall to find the waiter, who didn't
answer my ring. I saw this man," pointing to Gaspard, "at the desk, and
should have spoken to him, but just then the waiter hove in sight at the
end of the hall.

"So I went back. Just as I was closing the door of our room, I heard the
man come out of room B.

"I didn't see him, but I know that he went down the front stairs, for I
heard his footsteps, and also heard the door shut.

"The waiter came in and finally went out again. We. were just ready to
leave the place when we heard the pistol-shot in the other room.

"Then we got out of the house just as fast as we could. It was
cowardly, perhaps, but I knew that something terrible had happened, and
I didn't want to be mixed up in it.

"Of course I wanted to keep the lady out of it, too, and--and--well, you
can see that there were many reasons why I should have decided to make
tracks."

"You know that the man was not in room B when the shot was fired?" said
Nick.

"I'm sure of it."

"He might have come back."