But I've not the smallest doubt that Mac was watching
both ship and station till the last moment. That's why he ran it
so fine."
He took a cigarette and handed me the case, but I shook my head
impatiently.
"I still don't understand," said I. "Why should he be after you?
He couldn't come all this way about a jewel which was perfectly
safe for all he knew. What's your own theory?"
"Simply that he's been on my track for some time, probably ever
since friend Crawshay slipped clean through his fingers last
November. There have been other indications. I am really not
unprepared for this. But it can only be pure suspicion. I'll
defy him to bring anything home, and I'll defy him to find the
pearl! Theory, my dear Bunny? I know how he's got here as well
as though I'd been inside that Scotchman's skin, and I know what
he'll do next. He found out I'd gone abroad, and looked for a
motive; he found out about von Heumann and his mission, and there
was his motive cut-and-dried. Great chance--to nab me on a new
job altogether. But he won't do it, Bunny; mark my words, he'll
search the ship and search us all, when the loss is known; but
he'll search in vain. And there's the skipper beckoning the
whippersnapper to his cabin: the fat will be in the fire in five
minutes!"
Yet there was no conflagration, no fuss, no searching of the
passengers, no whisper of what had happened in the air; instead
of a stir there was portentous peace; and it was clear to me that
Raffles was not a little disturbed at the falsification of all
his predictions.
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