"Yes, but Violet is terrified at thunder. She always has been."
Almost noiselessly the motor sped along the dusty road. All Olga's faculties became concentrated upon her task, and she spoke no more.
They reached the village. It seemed to be deserted in the slumbrous stillness. There was not so much as a dog to be seen.
Suddenly Nick spoke. "What became of Hunt-Goring?"
The colour leaped into her pale, tense face. "He landed us at the jetty, and went away again in his yacht."
"Let us hope he will go to the bottom!" said Nick.
She shook her head, a gleam of spirit answering his. "Men like that never do."
They ran unhindered through the village and came to "The Ship." The inn-door gaped upon the street. There was not a soul in sight.
Olga brought the car to a stand. "We had better go straight in, Nick."
She peeped into the bar and found it empty. Together they entered the narrow passage. The unmistakable odour of beer and stale tobacco was all-prevalent. The air was heavy with it. They reached the foot of the steep winding stairs, and Olga paused irresolutely.
"There doesn't seem to be anyone downstairs. Will you wait while I run up?"
They ascended therefore, and commenced to search the upper regions. But the same absolute quiet reigned above as below. Only the loud ticking of a cuckoo-clock at the head of the stairs aggravated the stillness.
Olga opened one or two doors along the passage and looked into empty rooms, and finally turned round to Nick with scared eyes.
"What can have happened? Where can she be gone?"
As she uttered the words, there fell a heavy footstep in the sanded passage below, and the sound of a man's cough came up to them.
Nick descended the stairs with Olga behind him, and encountered the owner thereof at the bottom. He was a large-limbed man with a permanent slouch and a red and sullen countenance that very faithfully bore witness to his habits. He stood and regarded Nick with a fixed and somewhat aggressive stare.
"That's just what I want to know," said Nick.
Briggs uttered an uneasy guffaw as if he suspected the existence of a joke that had somewhat eluded him. His eyes rolled upward to Olga, and back to Nick.
"Well, she ain't 'ere seemin'ly," he remarked.
"Don't you know where she is?" demanded Nick.