"I don't altogether follow you, Mr. Bathurst," she answered, "so I don't know whether I can answer you satisfactorily--but I don't know of any connection of the kind you have indicated."
"I have a reason for asking," he intervened quickly. "There is abundant circumstantial evidence that your son, on the evening of the murder, may have been outside the billiard room window--almost in the same spot as this man Webb. If it were he, what took him there?"
"If he were there, Mr. Bathurst," said Mrs. Prescott, "you may depend upon it, that he had a good and honorable reason for going."
Anthony bowed. "I see no reason to doubt the accuracy of your opinion."
"But, all the same, I must confess to being mystified with regard to those footprints."
"The whole affair is a mystery," she answered, "that may never be solved."
"Not the whole affair, Mrs. Prescott--some aspects are becoming increasingly plain--and I hope in time to solve it all!" Anthony's jaw set.
"That will mean a lot to me, Mr. Bathurst," she said. "Perhaps more than I can tell you." She turned to Mary. "I'll come with you now, dear, as you suggested. Good-bye to you two gentlemen. But there, I'm sure to see you again." They passed out of the room together and left us.
"What are you doing this morning, Holmes?" I sallied. Anthony looked at me whimsically.
"I'm thinking of having another look at things," he said; "there are one or two things I should like to make more sure of."
"I should like to have a look at the billiard room--and Prescott's bedroom," he replied unconcernedly. "I'm building up a theory and I would like to test it in one or two places. Come with me?"
"Delighted," I answered. "Billiard room first?"
"As you please," said he. We ascended the stairs. In the sunshine of the morning, there seemed to remain no trace of the dreadful secret the room held. The table, bereft of its ghastly burden of a few days since, only spoke of the game it stood for. It was a difficult matter to realize all that had happened since the last game that had been played upon it.
"These chairs were overturned, Bill, and this poker was lying on the floor--remember?"
I did--and I said so. He went full length on the floor and took a magnifying-glass from his pocket.