"Be Muster Carrington there to-morrow?" inquired the ancient, his eyes glittering and evidently eager.
"Yes. At twelve o'clock. Can you swear that you saw him on that night?"
"Before the King and the Lord Chancellor," grunted the sexton. "Aye, fur sure I can say so, Squoire. Oh, I'll be there, sir; I'll be there." He rubbed his old wrinkled, gnarled hands gleefully. "I'll tell what I know, Squoire."
"We think that Mr. Carrington killed the vicar."
"Muster Leigh he bain't dead, I tell 'ee," said Titus for the third time and very irritably, after which he shuffled back to the cottage annoyed that his constant statement was not accepted. And it was queer that the old man should persist in declaring the vicar to be alive seeing that he had assisted to lay him in the family vault, which was visible from his abode.
However, Rupert, having impressed upon Ark that he was to be at The Big House at twelve o'clock next day did not trouble himself with the ancient's fancies. So long as Ark could swear--as he evidently could--that Carrington had been haunting the Vicarage on the night of the murder, what he believed about the vicar not being dead mattered little. The man was senile and was crazy on the one point, although he appeared to be clear enough on that other concerned with Carrington's presence at the Vicarage. Rupert did not trouble his head further about the matter, but returned home satisfied that the two witnesses would confound Carrington in the moment of his fancied triumph.
Nothing of any moment happened during the rest of the day, or next morning, when the meeting was to take place. Kit appeared with a spick and span machine before midday, and was sent over by Hendle to Tarhaven to bring back the Inspector by one o'clock. And Rupert informed the boy that while on the way back he could tell Lawson all that had been discovered so as to obviate the necessity of explanations. In fact, as Hendle said, it would be best for Kit to relate everything immediately he arrived at the police-office in Tarhaven, so that the Inspector could get a warrant for the barrister's arrest.
So Kit went off in high glee delighted at being able to do something for his hero and Rupert returned thoughtfully to his library where Mallien was already waiting.
"Suppose Carrington doesn't come?" suggested the Squire, who was very nervous.
"Oh, he'll come right enough," explained Mallien grimly. "I said in my letter that to-day you intended to arrange here about the transfer of the property to me under John Hendle's will, and that we both wanted him to be present."