“Why did you go to Horsham this morning?” he asked, and could have bitten his tongue when he realized his blunder.
Instantly the old man was wide awake.
“I never went to Horsham,” he roared. “Don’t know what you’re talking about. I’m not going to tell you anything. Throw ’em out, Johnson.”
When they were in the street again, Elk asked a question.
“No, I’ve never known him to drink before,” said Johnson. “He has always been very abstemious so long as I’ve known him. I never thought I could persuade him to talk.”
“Nor did I,” said Dick Gordon—a statement which more than a little surprised the detective.
Dick signalled to the other to get rid of Johnson, and when that philosophical gentleman had been thanked and sent away, Dick Gordon spoke urgently.
“We must have two men in this house at once. What excuse can we offer for planting detectives on Maitland?”
Elk pursed his lips.
“I don’t know,” he confessed. “We shall have to get a warrant before we arrest him; we could easily get another warrant to search the house; but beyond that I fear we can’t go, unless he asks for protection.”