"Was it interesting?" I asked.
"What I heard was, but I only got on to about every tenth word. They were doing the whispering act most of the time. Seemed to me they were fixing up something for to-day—something about you and the sea wall, as far as I could get it."
I nodded. "There's going to be an accident at our shooting party this afternoon, unless I'm much mistaken," I said.
"Looks like it," answered Billy grimly. "They seemed cursedly pleased with themselves, anyhow. The only other thing I heard was about your girl with the pistol—what's her name—Mercia."
"Mercia!" I echoed. "What were they saying about her?"
Billy grinned in a very aggravating manner. "I like to see you getting interested, Jack," he said. Then, removing his pipe, he knocked out the ashes against the bank.
"Billy," I said, "you're playing with death. Get on."
"I only heard her name," he chuckled. "The lop-sided gentleman trotted it out and repeated it about four times. I think he was annoyed with her over something, from the way he was speaking. Your cousin seemed to be rubbing it in."
A sudden uneasiness about Mercia's safety flashed through my mind. I had excellent proof that we were dealing with a pretty reckless gang, and if it was known that she had warned me against coming to Ashton she might well be in as grave danger as myself.
Billy evidently read my thoughts. "I think she's all right at present," he said, "for the simple reason that the whole gang seem to be hot on your track. I've not told you the best part yet, Jack. I've actually had the luck to run 'em to earth."