“Nothing,” he answered. “It was their fault not to meet us. You either drove faster than they expected or didn’t go to the right bridge. We ought to have grabbed him, but there is a reason back here why I couldn’t.”
“Oh, it’s their own fault,” I said. “Are you all in?”
“No,” he said. “Keep on moving and I’ll tell you. We have a second passenger. He’s hidden under the robe back here. I stepped on him as I got into the car in that town. I almost gave the show away saying ‘damn.’ It’s the chap who dropped the plaster on us. He was in the car before we left Visichich manor, and he seems to want to stay hidden.”
“So while they were looking for him outside the manor,” I said, “he was in the car?”
“They were not looking for me,” answered a muffled voice. “There was another riot. There will be many. I heard them talking about it when they took the other cars. I was afraid they would take this one, too, but they did not. They had not missed me. But now I must quickly be taken to the Palace. No one must see me.”
“Why should we take you to the Palace?” John asked. “For all we know you may be an assassin. We don’t even know any name to call you by, right or wrong.”
“I cannot tell you my name,” the man said, “but I did give you a pass to the Queen, did I not? If you will try to use that you will see that it will be honored.”
“You may have stolen it.”
“I will write you another, and you may see me write it. It also will be honored.”
“The Queen knows you, then?”