“Who said he was involved, sir?”
“Ah! Who, now? You can see very distinctly, Sergeant, where the body lay—just the one ugly token. No signs of a struggle, I think; and the ground too hard to have left a trace of footprints. But I won’t disturb you at your work.”
“I wouldn’t, sir,” said the detective pretty bluntly. “You can undertake, I fancy, to leave it all to me.”
“I’m sure I can,” answered the Baron pleasantly, and he went off towards the house, humming softly to himself a little French air.
“Who is he?” asked the detective, when the odd creature was out of hearing.
“I know little more about him than you do,” I answered; “and Sir Calvin’s acquaintance with him is, I think, almost as casual as my own. We both met him abroad at different times. He may be a person of distinction, or he may be just an adventurer for all I know to the contrary.”
“Well,” said the officer, “whoever he is, I don’t want him meddling in my business, and I shall have to tell Sir Calvin so.”
“Do,” I said. “Chess is the Baron’s business, and it’s that that he’s here for.”
But I kept my private suspicions, while duly noting as much as might or might not be implied in Le Sage’s curious interest in the scene of the crime. No doubt the last thing he had expected was our sudden descent upon him there.