I discarded my first
thought therefore--that he had returned unexpectedly--and I
sought for another solution.
But no other was on the instant forthcoming. The windows
remained obstinately blind, no figures appeared on the terrace,
the garden lay deserted, and without life. My departure had not,
as I half expected it would, drawn the secret into light.
I watched awhile, at times cursing my own meanness; but the
excitement of the moment and the quest tided me over that. Then
I determined to go down into the village and see whether anything
was moving there. I had been down to the inn once, and had been
received half sulkily, half courteously, as a person privileged
at the great house, and therefore to be accepted. It would not
be thought odd if I went again, and after a moment's thought, I
started down the track.
This, where it ran through the wood, was so densely shaded that
the sun penetrated to it little, and in patches only. A squirrel
stirred at times, sliding round a trunk, or scampering across the
dry leaves. Occasionally a pig grunted and moved farther into
the wood.
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