‘Yes, that he did, sir,’ said Lily proudly, ‘and insisted on it.’

’I soon knew they were going to burglarize this flat to get some phonograph records.’

‘Phonograph records!’ Hugo repeated, pondering.

’Yes, sir; and so I thought I’d be beforehand with ’em.’

‘Why didn’t you tell me directly you knew?’

’You gave me that Gaboriau book to read, sir, and I learnt a lot from it.  It’s put me up to a power of things.  And, amongst others, that two people can’t manage one job.  One job, one man.’

‘You’ll excuse Albert, sir,’ said Lily; ’that’s only his way of talking.’

’It was simply this, sir.  I found out enough to make me as sure as eggs is eggs that you’d like to have those phonograph records yourself, without having to inquire too much where they came from or how they came.’

‘I see.’

’Exactly, sir.  Well, to cut a long story short, sir, I happened to come across something yesterday that made me think that the annual sale was going to be interfered with by parties unknown.  But I’d got all I could manage, and I left that alone; I’d no time for it.  And last night parties unknown tried to break my leg for me with an open cellar-flap.  I knew it was a plant, and so I pretended it had succeeded.’

’He made me think his ankle was that sprained he couldn’t walk.  He wouldn’t trust even me, sir,’ said Lily.

‘Gaboriau,’ Albert explained briefly.  ’I knew I was watched, and I told Lily to tell the milkman I couldn’t walk.  It was all over Radipole Road at eight o’clock this morning.  And so, while parties unknown thought I was fast on a sofa, I slipped out by the back-door as soon as I’d sent Lily here to warn you about the annual sale, in case of necessity.  I must say I thought I should be twenty-four hours in front of Hawke’s men, but I expect they changed their plans.  I brought Lily along with me at the last moment.  She’s read Gaboriau, too, sir, and she’s mighty handy.’

‘I am aware of it,’ said Hugo.

’Anyhow, we got in here first, by the side-door on the balcony.  Hawke’s man must have come in about an hour after us, and you just after him.  That’s how I reckon it.’

‘You went into the drawing-room, didn’t you?’ Hugo asked.

‘Just looked in.’

‘And played with the clock?’

Here he glanced sternly at Lily.

‘I shook it to start it, sir, to see if it would go,’ Lily admitted.

‘I reckon you turned out Hawke’s man, sir?’ Albert queried.

‘It amounted to that,’ said Hugo.  ’But these phonograph records—­what are they?’

‘I don’t know what they are,’ said Albert, descending from the bed, ’but I know that Mr. Ravengar wanted them very badly.  It seems Mr. Tudor was a great hand at phonographs and gramophones.  Like me, sir.’

‘Yes, sir; we’ve got a beauty.  My uncle gave it us,’ Lily put in.  ’Oh, Alb! your arm’s all burst out again.’