Mazaroff laughed in a sulky kind of way. He said something to the effect that his memory was not as good as it might be. From time to time he glanced at the inner door of the suite, he seemed as if he could not keep his eyes off it.
"Do you think that you could find his address for me?" Lechmere persisted. "I have every reason to believe that he is somewhere in London at the present moment. Ah, look there. To think of it! And you pretending all this when the very man in question is in the next room. What a coincidence!"
"Call me a liar at once," Mazaroff said thickly "How dare you insinuate that I am not—not——"
"Telling the truth," Lechmere said coolly. "That stick yonder belongs to Peretori. Nobody else possesses one like it, as I have heard Peretori boast. If you can deny what I say after—but I shall make no apologies for seeing into the matter for myself."
With a sudden dart Lechmere was by the door leading into the inner room. Mazaroff started after him crying out something in Russian at the top of his voice. But he was too late to prevent Lechmere from entering the inner room. The place was quite empty now save for a hat and a pair of gloves on the table, both of which tended to prove that the room had been occupied a few moments before.
"This is a most unpardonable outrage," Mazaroff cried. He had quite recovered himself within the last minute or two, he was his cunning self again. "I did not ask you to come here at all. And as to the evidence of that stick it is worth nothing. I could get a copy of it made that—but after what has happened I think you had better give me the benefit of your absence."
"Quite so," Lechmere said pleasantly, "I apologise. I'll go out this way, I think. Awfully sorry to have ruffled you so much. Good-night."
Lechmere departed into the corridor by the far door, which he closed swiftly behind him. As he did so there came a sound of stumbling and falling from the region of the back stairs and curses in a ruffled voice that had a note of pain in it.
"Got him," Lechmere said triumphantly. "I was certain of my man. Now for it!"