"Look here, old chap," he said, coming to a halt, and turning abruptly to Dr. Fox, "it's my idea that if Hopkins intends mischief he will wait till the last few days before either disappearing himself or setting those sneaking Chinese dogs on to me. If we can only get him aboard and start several days before he expects the expedition to sail, his treacherous schemes may fail.
"Now, my idea is this. The Laird runs her after-repair trials to-morrow, and I will telegraph to her Captain and order him to report defects requiring twelve days to repair, and make arrangements as if our departure would be delayed till then, and give the information to the Press.
"The scheme is this, Doc," he continued excitedly. "'No. 1' destroyer runs her trials on Saturday next after coming out of dock. My idea is for us to go down to Portsmouth, take Hopkins with us—as if only for the trial, you understand—and, when we are out at Spithead, signal to the remainder of the squadron to prepare for sea, and to send a telegram to the Laird at Birkenhead ordering her to meet me at a certain rendezvous."
"That fellow Hopkins is a greater fool than I take him for if he is deceived by that," growled Dr. Fox.
"Perhaps you are right, but I will try; and I will wire to Cummins of the Laird at once."
"You had better use the cipher code," Dr. Fox suggested.
The twenty-four hours which followed the despatch of this telegram seemed like the same number of days.
Helston could not sleep. Twice during the night he came to Dr. Fox's room, with wild suggestions for warding off the blow he now felt certain was impending, and haggard and irresolute he paced to and fro in the smoking-room after breakfast next morning.
At one moment he would decide to rush off to Birkenhead himself; at another, that he would pack up and go aboard the Strong Arm at Spithead and await results there. Finally, he did not stir from the hotel till the evening, when the reply to his telegram arrived. "Full-speed trial successful; sundry small defects; condenser-tubes require fourteen days to repair."
It was Hopkins who brought in the telegram.