Certainly the Head was surprised.
He read the note again. No. There was no mistake. 'Thomson is not in
the House.' There could be no two meanings about that.
'Go across to Mr Merevale's,' he said at last, 'and ask him if he would
mind seeing me here for a moment.'
The butler bowed his head gently, but with more than a touch of pained
astonishment. He thought the Headmaster might show more respect for
persons. A butler is not an errand-boy.
'Sir?' he said, giving the Head a last chance, as it were, of realizing
the situation.
'Ask Mr Merevale to step over here for a moment.'
The poor man bowed once more. The phantom of a half-smoked cigar
floated reproachfully before his eyes. He had lit it a quarter of an
hour ago in fond anticipation of a quiet evening. Unless a miracle had
occurred, it must be out by this time. And he knew as well as anybody
else that a relighted cigar is never at its best. But he went, and in a
few minutes Mr Merevale entered the room.
'Sit down, Mr Merevale,' said the Head. 'Am I to understand from your
note that Thomson is actually not in the House?'
Mr Merevale thought that if he had managed to understand anything else
from the note he must possess a mind of no common order, but he did not
say so.
'No,' he said. 'Thomson has not been in the House since lunchtime, as
far as I know. It is a curious thing.'
'It is exceedingly serious. Exceedingly so. For many reasons. Have you
any idea where he was seen last?'
'Harrison in my House says he saw him at about three o'clock.'
'Ah!'
'According to Harrison, he was walking in the direction of Stapleton.'
'Ah. Well, it is satisfactory to know even as little as that.'
'Just so. But Mace—he is in my House, too—declares that he saw
Thomson at about the same time cycling in the direction of Badgwick. Both accounts can scarcely be correct.'
'But—dear me, are you certain, Mr Merevale?'
Merevale nodded to imply that he was. The Head drummed irritably with
his fingers on the arm of his chair. This mystery, coming as it did
after the series of worries through which he had been passing for the
last few days, annoyed him as much as it is to be supposed the last
straw annoyed the proverbial camel.
'As a matter of fact,' said Merevale, 'I know that Thomson started to
run in the long race this afternoon. I met him going to the
starting-place, and advised him to go and change again. He was not
looking at all fit for such a long run. It seems to me that Welch might
know where he is. Thomson and he got well ahead of the others after the
start, so that if, as I expect, Thomson dropped out early in the race, Welch could probably tell us where it happened. That would give us some clue to his whereabouts, at any rate.'
'Have you questioned Welch?'
'Not yet. Welch came back very tired, quite tired out, in fact and went
straight to bed. I hardly liked to wake him except as a last resource. Perhaps I had better do so now?'
'I think you should most certainly. Something serious must have
happened to Thomson to keep him out of his House as late as this. Unless—'
He stopped. Merevale looked up enquiringly. The Head, after a moment's
deliberation, proceeded to explain.
'I have made a very unfortunate mistake with regard to Thomson, Mr
Merevale. A variety of reasons led me to think that he had had
something to do with this theft of the Sports prizes.'
'Thomson!' broke in Merevale incredulously.
'There was a considerable weight of evidence against him, which I have
since found to be perfectly untrustworthy, but which at the time seemed
to me almost conclusive.'
'But surely,' put in Merevale again, 'surely Thomson would be the last
boy to do such a thing. Why should he? What would he gain by it?'
'Precisely. I can understand that perfectly in the light of certain
information which I have just received from the inspector. But at the
time, as I say, I believed him guilty. I even went so far as to send
for him and question him upon the subject. Now it has occurred to me, Mr Merevale—you understand that I put it forward merely as a conjecture—it occurs to me—'
'That Thomson has run away,' said Merevale bluntly.