"Let me see! The fight was to be at ten, was it not?" he asked.
"It was to be."
"I dare say it will be, too. Never say die, Tregellis! Your man has still three hours in which to come back."
My uncle shook his head.
"The villains have done their work too well for that, I fear," said he.
"Well, now, let us reason it out," said Berkeley Craven. "A woman comes and she coaxes this young man out of his room. Do you know any young woman who had an influence over him?"
My uncle looked at me.
"No," said I. "I know of none."
"Well, we know that she came," said Berkeley Craven. "There can be no question as to that. She brought some piteous tale, no doubt, such as a gallant young man could hardly refuse to listen to. He fell into the trap, and allowed himself to be decoyed to the place where these rascals were waiting for him. We may take all that as proved, I should fancy, Tregellis."
"I see no better explanation," said my uncle.
"Well, then, it is obviously not the interest of these men to kill him. Warr heard them say as much. They could not make sure, perhaps, of doing so tough a young fellow an injury which would certainly prevent him from fighting. Even with a broken arm he might pull the fight off, as men have done before. There was too much money on for them to run any risks. They gave him a tap on the head, therefore, to prevent his making too much resistance, and they then drove him off to some farmhouse or stable, where they will hold him a prisoner until the time for the fight is over. I warrant that you see him before to-night as well as ever he was."
This theory sounded so reasonable that it seemed to lift a little of the weight from my heart, but I could see that from my uncle's point of view it was a poor consolation.
"I dare say you are right, Craven," said he.
"I am sure that I am."
"But it won't help us to win the fight."
"That's the point, sir," cried Belcher. "By the Lord, I wish they'd let me take his place, even with my left arm strapped behind me."
"I should advise you in any case to go to the ringside," said Craven. "You should hold on until the last moment in the hope of your man turning up."
"I shall certainly do so. And I shall protest against paying the wagers under such circumstances."
Craven shrugged his shoulders.
"You remember the conditions of the match," said he. "I fear it is pay or play. No doubt the point might be submitted to the referees, but I cannot doubt that they would have to give it against you."
We had sunk into a melancholy silence, when suddenly Belcher sprang up from the table.
"Hark!" he cried. "Listen to that!"
"What is it?" we cried, all three.
"The betting! Listen again!"
Out of the babel of voices and roaring of wheels outside the window a single sentence struck sharply on our ears.
"Even money upon Sir Charles's nominee!"
"Even money!" cried my uncle. "It was seven to one against me, yesterday. What is the meaning of this?"
"Even money either way," cried the voice again.
"There's somebody knows something," said Belcher, "and there's nobody has a better right to know what it is than we. Come on, sir, and we'll get to the bottom of it."
The village street was packed with people, for they had been sleeping twelve and fifteen in a room, whilst hundreds of gentlemen had spent the night in their carriages. So thick was the throng that it was no easy matter to get out of the George. A drunken man, snoring horribly in his breathing, was curled up in the passage, absolutely oblivious to the stream of people who flowed round and occasionally over him.
"What's the betting, boys?" asked Belcher, from the steps.
"Even money, Jim," cried several voices.
"It was long odds on Wilson when last I heard."
"Yes; but there came a man who laid freely the other way, and he started others taking the odds, until now you can get even money."
"Who started it?"
"Why, that's he! The man that lies drunk in the passage. He's been pouring it down like water ever since he drove in at six o'clock, so it's no wonder he's like that."
Belcher stooped down and turned over the man's inert head so as to show his features.