"Quite so. The police would soon have ended her career had her infernal sway been known."
"Do you think," asked Lillian, after a pause, "that the members of the society expected that explosion?"
"No," answered Halliday, very promptly. "I do not, else, in spite of the danger, I believe the half, if not the whole, of them would have run out even into the arms of the police to be hanged in due course. But they seemed to have an enormous belief in Queen Beelzebub, who was undoubtedly as clever as her father the devil. The members expected that in some way she would manage to save them. But all the time--as I guessed, although I could not understand what she was aiming at--she was preparing some way of getting rid of the lot, herself included. She must have summoned them to a pretended conference so as to house all under one roof and then fire the mine. I expect she filled the cellars of The Grange ages ago with dynamite, and arranged with Mrs. Jarsell to explode the mine. Of course, where Mrs. Jarsell got the better of Queen Beelzebub was that she did not give her the pleasure of revenging herself on me, and fired the dynamite unexpectedly. While Miss Armour and her demons were thinking how to torture me, they all went--well, we won't say where they went. But there wasn't enough left of them to form a single human being."
"And there is an immense hole in the ground where The Grange stood," said Lillian, with awe; "Mr. Laurance told me, and Mildred also."
"I daresay that hole will form the basis of a legend in years to come," was Dan's reply, "and a very picturesque story can be made out of the material supplied by that infernal woman. She was as wicked and cruel and callous as that Ezzelin who played dice with the arch-fiend. By the way, Lillian, I suppose Mildred Vincent was very much cut up over the death of her uncle."
"No, she was not. Of course, she regretted his awful end, and that he should have been so wicked, but he was never kind to her and she had not much love for him. I don't know," ended Miss Moon, reflectively, "if we can be sure that he ever committed a crime."
"Yes, he did," declared Halliday, quickly; "every single member of that society had to commit a crime in order to belong to the gang. Vincent, I truly believe, was not a bad man, as his sole idea was a craze for inventing aeroplanes. But Queen Beelzebub, wanting him for her purpose, no doubt inveigled him into committing himself as a criminal, as she inveigled Mrs. Jarsell and Curberry."
"Poor Lord Curberry," sighed Lillian; "he is more to be pitied than blamed. I don't think the young man who holds the title now cared that he died."
"Can you expect him to?" asked Dan, sceptically, "seeing he has got a title and a lot of money. In a clean way, too, for Curberry consented to the murder of two relatives so as to secure what he wanted. No, Lillian, it is your kind heart that makes you pity Curberry, but he was not a good man. No decent fellow would have belonged to that association of demons. But I think we have discussed the subject threadbare. Let us talk of more pleasant matters."
"About Mr. Laurance and his marriage?" cried Lillian, gaily. "Well, yes, although being selfishly in love, I would much rather discuss our own. Freddy will be able to marry Mildred now since you have given him enough money to start a newspaper. It is very good of you."