I was awakened, as it seemed to me, just after I had fallen asleep, by some one knocking at the bedroom door. The knocking must have startled me out of a dreamless slumber, because it was a moment or two before I could remember where I was. Then I understood that some one was endeavouring to attract my attention from without.
"Who's there?" I said.
"It is I, Mrs. Barnes, the landlady. I wish to speak to you."
"What, now? What time is it? Won't the morning do?
"No, I must speak to you at once."
It seemed that, in my hurry to get into bed, I had forgotten to put the gas out. Slipping into some garments I opened the door. There stood Mrs. Barnes, with a lighted candle in her hand. For some cause or other she was in a state of unmistakable uneasiness. She looked white and haggard.
"I cannot find the waiter," she said.
"You cannot find the waiter!" I stared. "I am sorry to hear it, if you want to find him. But may I ask what that has to do with me?"
"I believe it has a good deal to do with you. What took place between you in the coffee-room?"
"Really, I am not aware that anything took place between us in the coffee-room that was of interest to you."