"How do you account for your time at the period of the occurrence?" inquired Mr. Pym. "What part of the house were you in?"
"I suppose I must have been in the dining-room, sir," she answered readily. "I was in there until just before the alarm was given, and then I had come up to my bedroom."
"Let's see. That is the room on the other side Mrs. St. John's bedroom?"
"Yes, sir; formerly my master's dressing-room. After his death, Mrs. St. John placed me and Master George in it. She felt lonely with no one sleeping near her."
"And that's where you were when you heard the alarm?"
"I was in there with the door shut when I heard Honour come screaming along the passage, running towards the grand staircase. I had not been in my room above a couple of minutes at the most. I had come straight up from the dining-room."
"And you did not go into the recess?"
"Certainly not, sir. What object could I have in doing so? I'd rather keep out of the place."
Mr. Pym looked at Honour. His expression said plainly that he thought she must have been mistaken.
"What had you done with yourself all the afternoon?" he demanded of Prance.