"Then, sir, I'm still at a loss to see how you are going to obtain possession of it."
Carne smiled indulgently. It pleased him to see how perplexed his servant was.
"In the simplest manner possible," he said, "provided always that I can get on board the yacht without my identity being questioned. The manner in which we are to leave the vessel will be rather more dangerous, but not sufficiently so to cause us any great uneasiness. You are a good swimmer, I know, so that a hundred yards should not hurt you. You must also have a number of stout canvas sacks, say six prepared, and securely attached to each the same number of strong lines; the latter must be fifty fathoms long, and have at the end of each a stout swivel-hook. The rest is only a matter of detail. Now, what have you arranged with regard to matters in town?"
"I have fulfilled your instructions, sir, to the letter," said Belton. "I have communicated with the agents who act for the owner of Portchester House. I have caused an advertisement to be inserted in all the papers to-morrow morning to the effect that the renowned detective Klimo, will be unable to meet his clients for at least a month, owing to the fact that he has accepted an important engagement upon the Continent, which will take him from home for that length of time. I have negotiated the sale of the various horses you have in training, and I have also arranged for the disposal of the animals and carriages you have now in use in London. Ram Gafur and the other native servants at Portchester House will come down by the mid-day train to-morrow, but before they do so, they will fulfill your instructions and repair the hole in the wall between the two houses. I cannot think of any more, sir."
"You have succeeded admirably, my dear Belton," said Carne, "and I am very pleased. To-morrow you had better see that a paragraph is inserted in all the daily papers announcing the fact that it is my intention to leave England for India immediately, on important private business. I think that will do for to-night."
Next morning he was up by sunrise, and, by the time his friends Lords Orpington and Amberley were thinking about breakfast, had put the finishing touches to the scheme which was to bring his career in England to such a fitting termination.
According to the arrangement entered into on the previous day his friends called for him at eleven o'clock, when they went ashore together. It was a lovely morning, and Carne was in the highest spirits. They visited the Castle together, made some purchases in the town, and then went off to lunch on board Lord Orpington's yacht. It was well-nigh three o'clock before Carne bade his host and hostess farewell, and descended the gangway in order to return to his own vessel. A brisk sea was running, and for this reason to step into the boat was an exceedingly difficult if not a dangerous, matter. Either he miscalculated his distance, or he must have jumped at the wrong moment; at any rate, he missed his footing, and fell heavily on to the bottom. Scarcely a second, however, had elapsed before his coxswain had sprung to his assistance, and lifted him up on to the seat in the stern. It was then discovered that he had been unfortunate enough to once more give a nasty twist to the ankle which had brought him to such grief when he had been staying at Greenthorpe Park on the occasion of the famous wedding.
"My dear fellow, I am so sorry," said Lord Orpington, who had witnessed the accident. "Won't you come on board again? We can easily hoist you over the side."
"Many thanks," replied Carne, "but I think I can manage to get back to my own boat. It is better I should do so. My man has had experience of my little ailments, and knows exactly what is best to be done under such circumstances; but it is a terrible nuisance, all the same. I'm afraid it will be impossible for me now to be present at his Royal Highness's dinner this evening, and I have been looking forward to it so much."
"We shall all be exceedingly sorry," said Lord Amberley. "I shall come across in the afternoon to see how you are."