Clementina

But his thoughts had been busy during that half-hour, and as soon as he

had come out from the mouth of the alley, he ran to Gaydon's lodging.

Gaydon, however, was not in. O'Toole lodged in the same house, and Wogan

mounted to his apartments, hoping there to find news of Gaydon's

whereabouts. But O'Toole was taking the air, too, but Wogan found

O'Toole's servant.

"Where will I find Captain O'Toole?" asked Wogan.

"You will find his Excellency," said the servant, with a reproachful

emphasis upon the title, "at the little bookseller's in the Piazza."

Wogan sprang down the stairs and hurried to the Piazza, wondering what

in the world O'Toole was doing at a bookseller's. O'Toole was bending

over the counter, which was spread with open books, and Wogan hailed him

from the doorway. O'Toole turned and blushed a deep crimson. He came to

the door as if to prevent Wogan's entrance into the shop. Wogan,

however, had but one thought in his head.

"Where shall I find Gaydon?" he asked.

"He went towards the Via San Vitale," replied O'Toole.

Wogan set off again, and in an hour came upon Gaydon. He had lost an

hour of his fortnight; with the half-hour during which he had sauntered

in the garden, an hour and a half.

"You went to Rome in the spring," said he. "There you saw the King. Did

you see anyone else by any chance whilst you were in Rome?"

"Edgar," replied Gaydon, with a glance from the tail of his eye which

Wogan did not fail to remark.

"Aha!" said he. "Edgar, to be sure, since you saw the King. But besides

Edgar, did you see anyone else?"

"Whittington," said Gaydon.

"Oho!" said Wogan, thoughtfully. "So you saw my friend Harry Whittington

at Rome. Did you see him with the King?"

Gaydon was becoming manifestly uncomfortable.

"He was waiting for the King," he replied.

"Indeed. And whereabouts was he waiting for the King?"

"Oh, outside a house in Rome," said Gaydon, as though he barely

remembered the incident. "It was no business of mine, that I could see."

"None whatever, to be sure," answered Wogan, cordially. "But why in the

world should Whittington be waiting for the King outside a house in

Rome?"

"It was night-time. He carried a lantern."

"Of course, if it was night-time," exclaimed Wogan, in his most

unsuspicious accent, "and the King wished to pay a visit to a house in

Rome, he would take an attendant with a lantern. A servant, though, one

would have thought, unless, of course, it was a private sort of visit--"