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But Antony was off the seat and letting himself gently down into the ditch.

His intention was to crawl round it until the shed came in sight.

The footsteps which he had heard seemed to be underneath the shed; probably there was a trap-door of some kind in the floor.

Whoever it was would have heard their voices, and would probably think it worth while to listen to what they were saying.

He might do this merely by opening the door a little without showing himself, in which case Antony would have found the entrance to the passage without any trouble to himself.

But when Bill turned his head and talked over the back of the seat, it was probable that the listener would find it necessary to put his head outside in order to hear, and then Antony would be able to discover who it was.

Moreover, if he should venture out of his hiding-place altogether and peep at them over the top of the bank, the fact that Bill was talking over the back of the seat would mislead the watcher into thinking that Antony was still there, sitting on the grass, no doubt, behind the seat, swinging his legs over the side of the ditch.

He walked quickly but very silently along the half-length of the bowling-green to the first corner, passed cautiously round, and then went even more carefully along the width of it to the second corner.

He could hear Bill hard at it, arguing from his knowledge of Mark's character that this, that and the other must have happened, and he smiled appreciatively to himself.

Bill was a great conspirator worth a hundred Watsons.

As he approached the second corner he slowed down, and did the last few yards on hands and knees.

Then, lying at full length, inch by inch his head went round the corner.

The shed was two or three yards to his left, on the opposite side of the ditch. From where he lay he could see almost entirely inside it. Everything seemed to be as they left it. The bowls-box, the lawn-mower, the roller, the open croquet-box, the-

"By Jove!" said Antony to himself, "that's neat."

The lid of the other croquet-box was open, too. Bill was turning round now; his voice became more difficult to hear. "You see what I mean," he was saying. "If Cayley-"

And out of the second croquet-box came Cayley's black head.

Antony wanted to shout his applause.

It was neat, devilish neat.

For a moment he gazed, fascinated, at that wonderful new kind of croquet-ball which had appeared so dramatically out of the box, and then reluctantly wriggled himself back.

There was nothing to be gained by staying there, and a good deal to be lost, for Bill showed signs of running down.

As quickly as he could Antony hurried round the ditch and took up his place at the back of the seat.

Then he stood up with a yawn, stretched himself and said carelessly, "Well, don't worry yourself about it, Bill, old man.

I daresay you're right.

You know Mark, and I don't; and that's the difference.

Shall we have a game or shall we go to bed?"

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