He paused a moment to let this sink in. Then:
"Miss Alicia Wayward's number. I see I shall have to bring her here. You see," he explained pleasantly, "I have locked the door. There are two of us against you."
He indicated Merriam, who still stood in the bathroom door, following the progress of the interview with excited interest.
"We are going to keep you here, not by any authority that we as guests of this hotel may have over you--as you have very well pointed out, we have none in such a matter,--but by simple force, till Miss Wayward can come down. We shall see whether she can make you talk."
To Merriam's astonishment the waiter, with a sound somewhere between a sigh and a groan, sank into the chair which he had thus far so pertinaciously refused to take. For a moment he stared at the floor. Then he raised his eyes to Rockwell:
"What do you want to know?"
"That's better," said Rockwell, leaving the door and preparing to sit down opposite Simpson. "Will you have a cigar?"
Simpson shook his head and repeated his question.
"What do you want?"
Rockwell dropped into his chair and glancing at Merriam pointed to another seat. Merriam was too much excited to care to sit down, but he came forward and leaned on the back of the chair.