man, Basil Bellward, who had been arrested, was one of the gang and that the dancer, Nur-el-Din, was in some way implicated in the affair! And that was the extent of his confidence! On the top of all this fog of obscurity rested the dense cloud surrounding the murder of old Mackwayte with the unexplained, the fantastic, clue of that single hair pointing back to Nur-el-Din. 

 Desmond consoled himself finally by saying that he would be able too get some light on his mission from Barbara Mackwayte, whom he judged to be in the Chief’s confidence. But here he was doomed to disappointment. Barbara could tell him practically nothing save what he already knew, that they were to work together in this affair. Like him, she was waiting for her instructions. 

 Barbara received him in a neat little suburban drawing-room in the house of her friends, who lived a few streets away from the Mackwaytes. She was wearing a plainly-made black crêpe de chine dress which served to accentuate the extreme pallor of her face, the only outward indication of the great shock she had sustained. She was perfectly calm and collected, otherwise, and she stopped Desmond who would have murmured some phrases of condolence. 

 “Ah, no, please,” she said, “I don’t think I can speak about it yet.” 

 She pulled a chair over for him and began to talk about the Chief. 

 “There’s not the least need for you to worry,” she said with a little woeful smile, like a sun-ray piercing a rain-cloud, “if the Chief says ‘Go back to France and wait for instructions,’ you may be sure that everything is arranged, and you will receive your orders in due course. So shall I. That’s the Chief all over. Until you know him, you think he loves mystery for mystery’s sake. It isn’t that at all. He just doesn’t trust us. He trusts nobody!” 

 “But that hardly seems fair to us...” began Desmond. 

 “It’s merely a precaution,” replied Barbara, “the Chief takes no risks. I’ve not the least doubt that he has decided to tell you nothing whatsoever about your part until you are firmly settled in your new role. I’m perfectly certain that every detail of your part has already been worked out.” 

 “Oh, that’s not possible,” said Desmond. “Why, he didn’t know until an hour ago that I was going to take on this job.” 

 Barbara laughed. 

 “The Chief has taught 

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