"He is not far off—he never is. Don't you hear the horse breathing outside the door? I can. I always hear it now. Don't let it come in—don't—don't, Auberthal!"
His voice rose to a shriek.
"Nothing shall come in."
"Thank you. I am so foolish to mind! I—I wanted to tell you. I—I murdered him."
He fell back exhausted.
"Whom?" asked Auberthal, aghast.
"My cousin Franz. He was the heir."
"But he was drowned."
Siebach struggled up on his elbow.
"No, I told them that. I shot him; and I knew if they found the body they would accuse me, so I hid it. And when his father died, and I got the castle, I dug him up—and—you know. I could not hide the skeleton, so I put it on the horse. Don't you think that was a good idea?"