He had just parted from Auntie Yvette and Lucille—­Lucille whose last words as she turned to go to her room had been:—­

“Now, understand, Dammy, what you want now is a sea-voyage, a sea-voyage to England and Monksmead.  When we have got you absolutely right, Mr. Wyllis shall show you as a specimen of the Perfect Man in Harley Street—­and then, Dammy ...” and his burning kisses had closed her mouth.

Was he scoundrel enough to do it?  Had he deteriorated to such a depth of villainy?  Could he let that noblest and finest flower of womanhood marry a—­dangerous lunatic, a homicidal maniac who had nearly killed the man who proved to be almost his greatest benefactor?  Could he?  Would the noble-hearted Decies frankly say that he was normal and had a right to marry?  He would not, and no living man was better qualified to give an opinion on the case of Damocles de Warrenne than the man who was a foster-father to him in childhood, and who brought him into the world in such tragic circumstances.  Decies had loved his mother, Lenore de Warrenne.  Would he have married her in such circumstances?  Would he have lived under the same roof with her permanently—­knowing how overpowering would be the temptation to give way and marry her, knowing how scandal would inevitably arise?  A thousand times No.  Was there no gentlemanliness left in Damocles de Warrenne that he should even contemplate the doing of a deed at which his old comrades-in-arms, Bear, Burke, Jones, Little, Goate, Nemo and Peerson would stand aghast, would be ready to kick him out of a decent barrack-room—­and the poor demented creature called for a “boy,” and ordered him to send, at once, for one Abdul Ghani who would, as usual, be found sleeping beside his camels in the market-place ...

Anon the gentle Abdul came, received certain instructions, and departed smiling till his great yellow fangs gleamed in the moonlight beneath the bristling moustache, cut back from the lips as that of a righteous Mussulman shikarri and oont-wallah should be.

Damocles de Warrenne’s brain became active with plots and plans for escape—­escape from himself and the temptation which he must avoid by flight, since he felt he could not conquer it in fight.

He must disappear.  He must die—­die in such a way that Lucille would never suppose he had committed suicide.  It was the only way to save himself from so awful a crime and to save her from himself.

He would start just before dawn on Abdul’s shikar camel, be well away from Kot Ghazi by daylight and reach the old deserted dak-bungalow, that no one ever used, by evening.  There Abdul would come to him with his bhoja-oont[31] bringing the usual supplies, and on receipt of them he would dismiss Abdul altogether and disappear again into the desert, this time for good.  Criminal lunatics and homicidal maniacs are better dead, especially when they are tempted beyond their strength to marry innocent, beautiful girls who do not understand the position.