sound, and twice lately I have been awakened by sounds."

"The _Durwan_," suggested Hartley.

"Not the _Durwan_. If it had been, I would not have spoken to you about
it. Heath has been visited towards morning by a man, and it was the
sound of voices that awoke me. It is no business of mine to pry or to
talk, and I would say nothing if it were not that I admire and respect
Heath, and I believe that he is in some horrible difficulty, out of
which he either will not, or cannot, extricate himself."

"Who was the man?"

Atkins ignored the question.

"I admit that I listened, but I overheard almost nothing, except just
the confused sounds of talking in low voices, but I heard Heath say, 'I
will not endure it, I am bearing too much already.' I think he spoke
more to himself than to the man in his room, but it was a ghastly thing
to hear, as he said it."

"Go on," said Hartley. "Tell me exactly what happened."

"I heard the door on to the back veranda open, and I heard the sound of
feet go along it--bare feet, mind you, Hartley--and then I went to
sleep. That was a week ago."

"And something of the same nature has occurred since?"

Atkins dried his hands with his handkerchief.