The reader will perhaps be in no way surprised to learn that Charles Peace attended the sale. He purchased a violin.
Bourne had at one time taken lessons of an eminent professor of that instrument, and in early life had amused himself during his leisure hours in practising, but he never made much of a hand at fiddling.
However, his violin was sufficiently good in tone and quality to tempt our hero to bid for it, and he became the purchaser at a ridiculously low sum.
Peace had always a penchant for visiting places of public resort, and the probability is that he was attracted to the sale by the circumstances connected with the dead man.
He knew that Bourne had been accused of murder—this fact in itself was quite sufficient to excite the curiosity of Charles Peace.
There was, it must be admitted, something like a grim jest in a murderer purchasing a murderer’s musical instrument at a public sale.
Rawton, or Bandy-legged Bill, as he was more frequently termed, kept his word; he never again paid a visit to Mrs. Bourne. He had not been seen or heard of by any of the detectives since he had effected his escape.
Mrs. Bourne very much regretted not having had any tidings of him.
She did not wish him to be captured—far from that, but he had behaved so well to her that she was desirous of forwarding him some money as a recompense for his exertions on behalf of herself.
Bill, however, contrived to remain perdu, and the doctor’s widow had lost all trace of him.