Enid Crofton looked at her torturer dumbly.  She did not know what to say—­what to admit, and what to deny.

“Think it over,” said the terrible little woman.  “We’re not in a ’urry to a day or two.  We’ll give you a fortnight to find the money.”

She put her hand, fat, yet claw-like, on Mrs. Crofton’s shoulder.  “There’s nothing to look so frightened about,” she said a little gruffly.  “Piper and me aren’t blackmailers.  But we’ve got to look out for ourselves, same as everybody else does.  It’s Piper’s idea—­that five hundred pounds is.  ’E says ’twould ease ’is conscience to carry on the pore old Colonel’s dog-breeding.  As for me, I’d just as lief ’ave ’im in a good job—­what gentlefolk call ’a cushy job’—­with a gentleman like this Major Radmore seems to be.  But there!  Piper’s just set on them nasty dogs, and ’e’s planned it all out.”

“Five hundred pounds is a great deal of money.”  Enid Crofton spoke in a dull, preoccupied tone.

“Not so much as it used to be, not by any manner of means,” said Mrs. Piper shrewdly.  “Think it over, Mrs. Crofton—­and let us know what you can do.  Perhaps it needn’t be paid all in one; but best to write to Piper next time.  ’E says ’e’d like to feel you and ’im were partners-like.  I’ll tell ’im I arranged for you to ’ave ten days to a fortnight to think it over.”

“Thinking won’t make money,” said Enid in a low voice.

“Such a beautiful young lady as yourself, Modam, can’t find it difficult to put ’er ’and on five hundred pounds,” murmured Mrs. Piper, and as she said the words there came a leering smile over her small, pursed-up mouth.

And then, turning, she glided across the candle-lit room, and noiselessly opening the door, she slid through it.

Enid Crofton sank farther back into her chintz-covered easy-chair.  She was trembling all over, and her hands were shaking.  She had not felt so frightened as she felt now, even during the terrible moments which had preceded her being put in the witness-box at the inquest held on her husband’s body; and with a feeling of acute, unreasoning terror, she asked herself how she could cope with this new, dreadful situation.

What, for instance, did that allusion to the insurance company mean?  She had had the two thousand pounds, and she had spent about a quarter of it paying bills of which her husband had known nothing.  Then the settling in at The Trellis House had cost a great deal more than she had expected.  Of course she had some left, but five hundred pounds would make a hideous hole in her little store.

What could the Pipers do to her?  Could they do anything?  The sinister woman’s repetition of Piper’s curious remark, “’E says sometimes as what ’e ought to give ’imself up, and say what ’e saw,” came back to her with sickening vividness.

She looked round her, timorously.  The candles on her dressing-table gave such a poor light.  How stupid of a village like Beechfield not to have electric light!  She stood up and rang for a hot-water bottle.  At any rate she might as well try to get a little beauty sleep before dressing to go to the Tosswills.