At nightfall he returned and mounted to the parlour, where Clementina awaited him.

“There is no sign of Captain Misset,” said he.

Wogan was puzzled by the way in which Clementina received the news.  For a moment he thought that her eyes lightened, and that she was glad; then it seemed to him that her eyes clouded and suddenly as if with pain.  Nor was her voice a guide to him, for she spoke her simple question without significance,—­

“Must we wait, then, till the morning?”

“There is a chance that they may come before the morning.  I will watch on the top stair, and if they come I will make bold to wake your Highness.”

Their hostess upon this brought their supper into the room, and Wogan became at once aware of a change in her demeanour.  She no longer embarrassed them with her patronage, nor did she continue her sly allusions to the escapades of lovers.  On the contrary, she was of an extreme deference.  Under the deference, too, Wogan seemed to remark a certain excitement.

“Have you other lodgers to-night?” he asked carelessly.

“No, sir,” said she.  “Travellers are taken by a big house and a bustle of servants.  They stay at the Vapore Inn when they stay at Peri, and to their cost.”

As soon as she had left the room Wogan asked of Clementina,—­

“When did her manner change?”

“I had not remarked the change till now,” replied Clementina.

Wogan became uneasy.  He went down into the courtyard, and found it empty.  There was a light in the kitchen, and he entered the room.  The landlady was having her supper in company with her few servants, and there were one or two peasants from the village.  Wogan chatted with them for a few minutes and came out again much relieved of his fears.  He thought, however, it might be as well to see that his pony was ready for an emergency.  He crossed silently to the stable, which he found dark as the courtyard.  The door was latched, but not locked.  He opened it and went in.  The building was long, with many stalls ranged side by side.  Wogan’s pony stood in the end stall opposite to the door.  Wogan took down the harness from the pegs and began to fix it ready on the pony.  He had just put the collar over its head when he heard a horse stamping in one of the stalls at the other end of the stables.  Now he had noticed in the morning that there were only two horses in the building, and those two were tied up in the stalls next to that which his pony occupied.  He walked along the range of stalls.  The two horses were there, then came a gap of empty stalls, and beyond the gap he counted six other horses.  Wogan became at once curious about those six other horses.  They might of course be farm-horses, but he wished to know.  It was quite dark within the building; he had only counted the horses by the noise of their movements in their stalls, the rattle of their head-ropes, and the pawing of their feet.