“I want no help.  I shall be armed.”

They started, however, and Jenny’s fears were not realized.  Doria showed no levity and did nothing suspicious.  He kept close to Brendon, offered him an arm at steep places and advanced a dozen theories of the incidents reported.  He was deeply interested and reiterated his surprise that the unknown’s shot should have missed Brendon.

“It is better to be lucky than wise,” he declared.  “And yet who shall not call you very wise indeed?  That was a great ruse—­to fall as though dead when the bullet had missed its billet.”

Brendon did not reply and little was said as they proceeded to the scene of his adventures; but presently Doria spoke again.

“One eye of the master sees more than six of his servants.  We shall hear how Pietro Ganns understands all this.  But I am thinking of the red man.  What is in his mind this morning?  He is very savage with himself and perhaps frightened.  Because he knows that we know.  He is a murderer still.  He does not repent.”

They scoured the scene of Brendon’s exploit presently and it was Jenny who found the shallow grave.  She was very pale and shivering when they responded to her call.

“That is where you would be now!” she said to Mark.

But he was occupied with the mould piled beside the pit.  Here and there were prints of heavy feet and Doria declared that the impression of the nails pointed to such boots as the mountain men habitually wore.  Nothing else rewarded the search; but Giuseppe was full of theories and Brendon, occupied with his own thoughts, allowed him to chatter without interruption.  For his part he felt doubtful whether any further apparition of Robert Redmayne might be expected.  This failure would probably put a period to his activity for a time.

Mark determined to take no action until Mr. Ganns came back to Menaggio.  Meanwhile he proposed to occupy himself with the husband and wife and, so far as possible, preserve an attitude of friendship to them both.  That relations were secretly strained between them appeared clear enough; and the results of casual but frequent visits to the Villa Pianezzo were summed in the detective’s mind before Mr. Redmayne and Peter returned.  He believed most firmly that Doria was in collusion with the secret antagonist, and intended ultimate mischief to his wife’s uncle for his own ends; and he was equally convinced that Jenny, while conscious enough that her husband could not be trusted and meant evil, as yet hardly guessed the full extent of his infernal purpose.