"Got nothing to do with it," said Antrim aggressively. "Think I cared a rap? Rot! It wasn't that. It was wondering what game there was: if Hogenauer had a game: if — it was wondering about absolutely nothing. Only nerves. Think I could talk naturally to Hogenauer that night? I ask you!" He was becoming incomprehensible, turning out his knobby hands with a fierce gesture, but he conveyed a state of mind. "Funny thing, too. I'll be frank with you. While I was sitting talking to poor old Hogenauer in here, I remember thinking, `What if I should shove a dose of poison into your bromide, and you should take it with your mineral water?' You may not believe it, but that's what I thought.
"Whew!" added Dr. Antrim, after a pause.
"You ask me what I had to be afraid of," be went on. "I don't know. That's always why you're afraid. As I say, I couldn't sleep. About half-past twelve I decided I'd better get up. I didn't want to wake Betty; she was sleeping soundly. I got up and went into the next room and turned on the light and tried to read. No good. So I turned out the light and sat down by the window (it was open) and smoked a cigarette."
This reminded him that he had the fragment of one in his hand now. After a gesture as though to toss it across at the fireplace, he seemed suddenly to remember himself; he got up with great dignity and extinguished it in an ashtray on the desk.
"There was a moon up. I think I must have dozed a bit: not sure. But then I thought I heard a sort of-what's the word I want?" he snapped his fingers. "A sort of cracking sound."
"Well… now," said H.M., musingly. "What direction did it come from, son?"
"I don't know. It wasn't very loud. I thought I might have imagined it. Then I thought of all sorts of-games. And Hogenauer. And Betty's father. And everything. Dammit. So I went and got my gun and started downstairs-"
"You went back to your bedroom?"
"No. I keep the gun in a drawer of the room I was sitting in then; sort of den. And I went downstairs. As I got to the landing, where I could look out of the landing window that looks on the back lawn, I thought I saw something like a shadow ducking across out of sight-"
"Hold on, son," interrupted H.M. in a curious tone. "This is business. Coming from which direction?