I told him briefly the story of Gresson, and how I had tracked his man here.  As I talked we ate our supper, and I wish I could have watched Wake’s face.  He asked questions, for he wasn’t convinced in a hurry.  I think it was my mention of Mary Lamington that did the trick.  I don’t know why, but that seemed to satisfy him.  But he wasn’t going to give himself away.

‘You may count on me,’ he said, ’for this is black, blackguardly treason.  But you know my politics, and I don’t change them for this.  I’m more against your accursed war than ever, now that I know what war involves.’

‘Right-o,’ I said, ’I’m a pacifist myself.  You won’t get any heroics about war from me.  I’m all for peace, but we’ve got to down those devils first.’

It wasn’t safe for either of us to stick in that cave, so we cleared away the marks of our occupation, and hid our packs in a deep crevice on the rock.  Wake announced his intention of climbing the tower, while there was still a faint afterglow of light.  ’It’s broad on the top, and I can keep a watch out to sea if any light shows.  I’ve been up it before.  I found the way two years ago.  No, I won’t fall asleep and tumble off.  I slept most of the afternoon on the top of Sgurr Vhiconnich, and I’m as wakeful as a bat now.’

I watched him shin up the face of the tower, and admired greatly the speed and neatness with which he climbed.  Then I followed the crevice southward to the hollow just below the platform where I had found the footmarks.  There was a big boulder there, which partly shut off the view of it from the direction of our cave.  The place was perfect for my purpose, for between the boulder and the wall of the tower was a narrow gap, through which I could hear all that passed on the platform.  I found a stance where I could rest in comfort and keep an eye through the crack on what happened beyond.

There was still a faint light on the platform, but soon that disappeared and black darkness settled down on the hills.  It was the dark of the moon, and, as had happened the night before, a thin wrack blew over the sky, hiding the stars.  The place was very still, though now and then would come the cry of a bird from the crags that beetled above me, and from the shore the pipe of a tern or oyster-catcher.  An owl hooted from somewhere up on the tower.  That I reckoned was Wake, so I hooted back and was answered.  I unbuckled my wrist-watch and pocketed it, lest its luminous dial should betray me; and I noticed that the hour was close on eleven.  I had already removed my shoes, and my jacket was buttoned at the collar so as to show no shirt.  I did not think that the coming visitor would trouble to explore the crevice beyond the platform, but I wanted to be prepared for emergencies.