“Her husband and her uncle, Captain Redmayne, had gone to the bungalow, as they often did after working hours, to carry on a bit; but at midnight they hadn’t come home, and she was put about for ’em.  Hearing of the motor bike, I thought there might have been a breakdown, if not an accident, so I told Ford to knock up another chap and go down along the road.  Which they did do—­and Ford came back at half after three with ugly news that they’d seen nobody, but they’d found a great pool of blood inside the bungalow—­as if somebody had been sticking a pig there.  ’Twas daylight by then and I motored out instanter.  The mess is in the room that will be the kitchen, and there’s blood on the lintel of the back door which opens into the kitchen.

“I looked round very carefully for anything in the nature of a clue, but I couldn’t see so much as a button.  What makes any work here wasted, so far as I can see, is the evidence of the people at the cottages in the by-road to Foggintor, where we came in.  A few quarrymenn and their families live there, and also Tom Ringrose, the water bailiff down on Walkham River.  The quarrymen don’t work here because this place hasn’t been open for more than a hundred years; but they go to Duke’s quarry down at Merivale, and most of ’em have push bikes to take ’em to and from their job.

“At these cottages, on my way back to breakfast, I got some information of a very definite kind.  Two men told the same tale and they hadn’t met before they told it.  One was Jim Bassett, under foreman at Duke’s quarry, and one was Ringrose, the water bailiff who lives in the end cottage.  Bassett has been at the bungalow once or twice, as granite for it comes from the quarry at Merivale.  He knew Mr. Pendean and Captain Redmayne by sight and, last night, somewhere about ten o’clock by summer time, while it was still light, he saw the captain leave and pass the cottages.  Bassett was smoking at his door at the time and Robert Redmayne came alone, pushing his motor bicycle till he reached the road.  And behind the saddle he had a big sack fastened to the machine.

“Bassett wished him ‘good night’ and he returned the compliment; and half a mile down the by-road, Ringrose also passed him.  He was now on his machine and riding slowly till he reached the main road.  He reached it and then Ringrose heard him open out and get up speed.  He proceeded up the hill and the water bailiff supposed that he was going back to Princetown.”

Inspector Halfyard stopped.

“And that is all you know?” asked Brendon.

“As to Captain Redmayne’s movements—­yes,” answered the elder.  “There will probably be information awaiting us when we return to Princetown, as inquiries are afoot along both roads—­to Moreton and Exeter on the one side and by Dartmeet to Ashburton and the coast towns on the other.  He must have gone off to the moor by one of those ways, I judge; and if he didn’t, then he turned in his tracks and got either to Plymouth, or away to the north.  We can’t fail to pick up his line pretty quickly.  He’s a noticeable man.”