it was a weird cry the like of which, in all his vicissitudes, russell had never heard before. there was not pain in it so much as the wild and vivid fear of a soul going down into eternal torment. twice again the cry came and then all was silent once more. uzali rose to his feet without the slightest appearance of haste; indeed, from his collected movements and assured air he might have been expecting something of the kind.
"what shall we do now?" russell whispered.
"that depends on whether we are too late or not," uzali replied. "come and see for yourself. one or two things have been puzzling you lately and now we can clear them all up."
the speaker moved to the open window. he had scarcely reached the threshold before that strange cry came again. it was much fainter this time and lacked the dominant note of fear. it was more despairing and sounded a long way farther off. at the same time russell held back a moment, for he could hear a disturbance overhead.
surely enough there came the sound of voices raised in expostulation and a moment later mason came downstairs.
"what is it?" he exclaimed. "what are you gentlemen doing? don't you know that my patient is at death's door? on no account was he to be disturbed. that extraordinary noise has awakened him, and now it is as much as two of us can do to keep him in bed. i don't want to rouse the servants."
something like an oath broke from uzali's lips.
"for heaven's sake! go back where you came from," he said. "you have enough to do upstairs without disturbing us. besides, you have dr. mercer to help you."
mason looked at the speaker in astonishment. he was not accustomed to being spoken to in that way, but he made no protest. overhead flower's voice could be heard raised in feeble fury. he seemed to be pleading for release.
"oh, go upstairs," uzali said. "i assure you, my good fellow, you gain nothing by standing here, and if the servants are aroused you will be conferring a favour on everybody by sending them back to bed again. now do as you are told."
without waiting for reply uzali strode out into the garden followed by russell. from the lawn they could see shadows flitting across the blinds of flower's room. it was plain that a struggle was going on.
"that's a piece of cruel bad luck," russell muttered. "i wonder what woke him up."
"can't you guess?" uzali said impatiently. "wasn't that cry enough to wake the dead? it would arouse anybody who was not lost to consciousness. it appealed all the more to flower because he had heard something like it before. but, come, we have no time to lose. i hope before morning that we shall have settled this ghastly business for ever. and now to find out where those fellows went. i hope you know the house."
"indeed, i don't," russell said. "i don't know any more than you do. mercer could help us."
uzali made no reply. very carefully he strode round the house, looking intently amongst the ivy which fringed the stone walls. he seemed to be seeking for some cellar trap or sunken door by which the basement might be reached. he gave a grunt of triumph presently as he pointed to a flight of moss-clad stairs leading to a small door below. he pressed his shoulder to the woodwork and it gave way quietly. once more he chuckled.
"we are on the track at last," he whispered. "we shall find it here. strike a light!"
russell took a vesta from his pocket and after lighting it held it aloft. he made out the outline of a dim vault with three doors at the far end approached by flights of steps. the place apparently was empty and uzali strode along as if he were on the verge of some important discovery. then russell's foot tripped over the support of an iron wine-bin and the whole thing came over with a rattle and roar that made the place echo. with a cry uzali started back.
"now you have done it," he said hoarsely. "look out for yourself. give us another match for goodness' sake."
the match went out as if some unseen person had stooped and extinguished it. just before the last dying gleam faded it seemed to russell that two shadowy forms had passed him rapidly. he knew a moment later that he was not mistaken, for he heard footsteps running up the stairs leading to the garden.
"after them," uzali whispered. "the tragedy is done so far as we are concerned. that unfortunate man is beyond salvation. after them! it is not so dark as you think."
after the intense gloom of the vault the garden was by comparison almost light. russell could see the two forms not more than a hundred yards ahead. he set off doggedly in chase. his blood was up now, his heart was full of anger, and a certain recklessness possessed him. come what might those people should not escape him again; neither did he need uzali to tell him who they were. he knew he was in close pursuit of the two malays whom he had seen not so many hours before lying on the floor in jansen's sitting-room.
it all grew clear to russell as he raced along. he was just as anxious to catch up with those men, just as determined to mete out to them the punishment they deserved, but the wild feeling of passion was gone.
doubtless the malays had been too cunning for jansen. to a certain extent they had trusted him, but the dutchman's drugs had been insufficient. what jansen had come to maldon grange for, russell could not tell. but there must have been some deep reason for his move, some pressing need of keeping the malays out of the way till his errand was accomplished.
russell ran on and on without sense of fatigue, for he was in hard training, his muscles tense and rigid as whipcord, his lungs playing freely. uzali was far behind and out of the hunt. the malays, too, showed that they knew they were being followed. for a long time they kept to the road till it began to dawn upon them that their antagonist was gaining ground, then they vaulted lightly over a gate and entered the fields. russell smiled grimly as he noticed the move. he was not perhaps quite so agile as those in front, but he knew the heavier going would suit him better. sooner or later he must wear those fellows down and bring them to a sense of their responsibilities. there was consolation in the knowledge that he was armed. he smiled as he felt for his revolver in his hip pocket.
a mile or so and the pace began to tell. the fugitives were not more than sixty or seventy yards away. they were toiling distressfully along, and russell could see that their limbs were growing heavy under them.
"pull up!" he cried. "it is useless to go any farther. if you don't stop i'll fire into you."
but there was no suggestion of stopping on the part of the malays. they swerved to the right as a hare might do and breasted a slight embankment on the top of which was the permanent way of the railway. russell was not more than two yards in the rear as they stumbled over the fence and dashed across the line. his blood was up, but he did not lose his presence of mind. something was ringing in his ears besides the rush of wind, something booming and tearing; with a blinding light and headlong rush round the bend tore the express at top speed.
russell pulled up in the nick of time. he yelled to the malays. but it was too late. they had seen and heard nothing. they seemed to be licked up by the flaming light and roaring steam. it was over in the flash of an instant. the express had disappeared and the silence of deep darkness fell again, as russell stood fumbling unsteadily in his pocket for his matches.
he turned, shuddering, from the horror of it. the two figures lay there battered almost out of recognition. they would do no more mischief in this world. still, they should not be neglected. a few hundred yards down the line russell could see the lights of a small station and towards this he hurried as fast as his legs would carry him. it was an incoherent story, but he managed to make a sleepy night porter and one or two navvies camping up by the side of the rails to understand something of the tragedy. a few minutes later and the figures were removed to the station where they lay side by side covered with coarse sacking.
"i am staying at maldon grange," russell explained. "i will call in the morning. i dare say one of you would not mind notifying the police for me."
