There was the sound of branches moving with a swish, and three men came out of the wood together.
One, whose stiff gait indicated that his hands were tied behind him, so that he was afraid to step freely, was between the other two, each of whom held him by an elbow.
As they came clear of the shadows, Nick saw that, not only were the hands of the man in the middle bound, but a handkerchief was fastened tightly over his mouth.
“Drago!� muttered the detective. “It’s just what I expected. They’ve got some one else from the hotel, and stopped on their way to pick up this one from the wood.�
As the newcomers came up to the other five men, Nick heard somebody say softly:
“That you, Mr. Kennedy?�
“Yes,� came the reply.
“Kennedy!� muttered Nick. “Well, it is a common name.[Pg 30] This may not be the Kennedy I know. But, taking it with everything else I’ve found out, it looks as if it might be.�
There was a low conversation, of which the detective did not catch much—not enough to know what it was all about, indeed—until he heard the man who had first spoken respond to a remark that did not reach his ears:
“No, sir. We haven’t heard a sound or seen anybody since we came into the woods.�