"No," said Kiddie, sniffing like a spaniel after partridge. "It's more like the aroma of one of my Egyptian cigarettes." He glanced up at a shelf. "They're gone, I see."
Rube also looked up at the shelf. He knew where Kiddie kept his stock of cigarettes. He knew also that besides the cigarettes there had been several parcels of pipe tobacco. He observed now that while the cigarettes had been taken, the tobacco remained on the shelf untouched. This fact puzzled him.
Kiddie had already gone into the farther room—his workroom—with Isa Blagg. Isa had taken out his pocket-book and pencil.
"If you'll sing out the things that are missin', Kiddie, I'll make a list of 'em," he said.
"But I can't tell you right off," objected Kiddie. "There's my gold watch and chain, worth fifty guineas, a gold cigarette-case studded with brilliants, five diamond rings, three diamond scarfpins, about five hundred pounds in English and American bank-notes—a whole heap of things are missin', but I'm not goin' ter worry about 'em now. The list can wait."
"But you want t' catch an' punish the thief, don't you?" urged Isa.
"I want to catch and punish the low-down skunk who murdered my deerhound," declared Kiddie, his eyes flashing in the vehemence of his anger.
"Kiddie," said Rube, now entering the room, "I'm some puzzled."
"What about, Rube?" asked Kiddie. "What's your problem?"
"It's this," answered Rube, scratching the back of his ear. "Allowin' that Nick Undrell entered by the broken winder an' carried off the valuables you've just bin figurin' up, why, when he went into th' other room, did he take the cigarettes an' leave the tobacco?"